


Crisis on Corellia

by MyFutureGirl



Series: The Wandering Eye Episode I: Crisis on Corellia [1]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, The Mandalorian (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Pre-Canon, Canon-Typical Violence, Enemies to Friends, F/M, My First Fanfic, No Smut, Slow Burn, What Have I Done, lets cringe together, no shade if you like smut I just wanted to create a cheesy romance, what if Mando had a real relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-22
Updated: 2020-05-05
Packaged: 2021-03-01 02:40:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 39,501
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23257813
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MyFutureGirl/pseuds/MyFutureGirl
Summary: Sloane Savotta, a lead smuggler of the elusive smugglers crew the Wandering Eye, is trapped on Corellia after a simple mission turns into an all out gang war. She sends her team back to base, leaving her stranded and desperate to finish the mission on her own. The mission becomes even more dire when a mysterious bounty hunter appears, seemingly working for the Coronet City Bloodless, the ruthless gang rivaled against the Wandering Eye. How will Sloane finish her mission? Will she have to fend off the rival gang and the mysterious hunter on her own? Or will an unexpected ally help turn the tides?
Relationships: The Mandalorian (The Mandalorian TV)/Original Female Character(s)
Series: The Wandering Eye Episode I: Crisis on Corellia [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1672306
Kudos: 9





	1. Chapter 1: The Wandering Eye

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [I Caught Fire](https://archiveofourown.org/external_works/570256) by go-commander-kim. 



> I am so sorry for what is about to befall you. First of all, this is my first fic so let's prepare to cringe together at how horrible I am! This is a pre-canon AU that takes place at least 5 years before the start of The Mandalorian series on Disney+, so there will be no Baby Yoda (I'm sorry. I love him too.). Most of the characters in this fic are original, including the protagonist. In fact, I'm pretty sure Mando is the only canon character in the first couple of chapters. However he isn't in this chapter, and he won't be in the next one, but don't you worry! Our favorite bounty hunter will make his dramatic entrance in due time. Anyway, hope you like it!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is really more of a prologue than a chapter. I know it's really slow and a bit boring, but I promise this series gets WAY more interesting. I just needed to get the boring expository stuff out of the way or else it wouldn't make any sense. We all know who Mando is, but since this series is mostly based on original characters I needed to introduce them first.

"Walk with me, Sloane." Reba said. She was a red Zabrak, as stern and severe as they came. She waited for the young woman to fall in step beside her.

  
"Anything wrong?" Sloane asked warily, afraid she was in trouble. She was an adult now. Too old to be grounded for misbehavior, but still. No one stepped out of line without hearing from Reba, and Sloane certainly hoped she hadn't heard about her little, uh, _confrontation_ in the docking bay.

  
"Not that I've heard. Why, you hear anything?" Reba said, carefully eyeing Sloane.

  
"No, no! Please, don't let me distract you. Carry on with what you were going to say." Sloane said with a polite smile. Reba smirked. She knew Sloane was hiding something from her. Wouldn't take long for her to find out what.

  
"I've got a run for you. An Eye in Corellia has tipped us off on a shipment of weapons and ammo that was abandoned by the Imps. It arrived late and didn't make it onto the ship or something. Not important how it got there, just how we're going to get it." Reba said. The two approached the control room where the holotable was already lit with the mission details. Sirius was already debriefing three other crew members about the mission. The other three were Leroy and Arlo, two Twi-lek brothers, and a wookiee everyone called Tank simply because they couldn't say his real name even if they wanted too.

  
"Sloane, nice of you to join us." Sirius said in his grizzled voice.

  
"Oh, I just thought I'd pop in and say hello for old time's sake." Sloane said sarcastically. "This the crew?" she leaned on the holotable and looked across at the men on the other side.

  
"The finest we could find." Sirius said, putting a hand on Arlo's shoulder. "This is Arlo's first mission. Figured it be only fair to send him out with his brother and keep the mission nice and straightforward." Sirius squeezed Arlo's shoulder then opened up the map of the city on the holotable. "This is Coronet City on Corellia. An Eye there secured a shipment of ten crates loaded with weapons and ammo off the black market. He's waiting for us here," Sirius zoomed in on a dock just outside the city, "at Dock ten. You won't be able to land there though since it's pretty high security. Instead, you'll be landing outside of town over here." Sirius zoomed the map out, and then back in on a dock right outside Coronet City. "This is Dock twelve, the last dock in the city limits and the one you'll be landing on. It will be a hike to get there but it's our best option. It's on a cliff side away from the city, so it's not really busy. Plus we got an in with the dock owner so he won't call the Imps on us. All you need to do is land, get over to Dock ten and pick up the shipment, and then get back home as soon as possible."

  
"Be careful." Reba said sternly, drawing the attention of everyone in the room. "Our Eye has also spotted some Bloodless hanging around Dock ten, possibly after the shipment. Don't let them ambush you or steal the shipment. Our Top Client is counting on us to bring it in." The Coronet Bloodless. A ruthless gang based in the Coronet City that held the half of the city that wasn't afraid of the Imperial presence afraid of them. They did nothing but terrorize the citizens and took what they wanted. Goods, payment, people: everything belonged to the Bloodless.

  
"The Bloodless? Aren't we allies?" Arlo asked, looking around the room for anyone to reply.

  
"Not anymore. Not since they started trafficking." His older brother Leroy replied with a sneer at the thought of the crime. "The Wandering Eye doesn't deal with traffickers, so we don't deal with the Bloodless anymore."

  
"That's right, Leroy. We also don't deal with lost shipments so keep an eye out for them." Sirius said, nodding to the two boys. "The Wandering Eye has a reputation to uphold, not only with our Top Client, but within the Outer Rim. This mission has stakes and we can't afford to fail. Other than the Bloodless, this pick-up is as straightforward as they come. Sloane and Tank are the most experienced, so you two boys," Sirius pointed at Leroy and Arlo, "listen to them and do as they say. Sloane takes point. Tank you'll handle with the shipment. Leroy and Arlo, you boys are the look-outs. For Bloodless, for Imps, anything. We need this shipment done in a timely and quality manner. Understood?"

  
"Yes, sir." Everyone replied in unison.

  
"Then you'll move out tonight." Reba said eyeing the crew carefully. "You'll be taking the Beast of Burden. It doesn't have any weapons systems but it's our only ship that will be able to carry the cargo. If you carry out the mission effectively though, you won't need any weapons systems. Good luck and come back safe."

  
"Yes, ma'am." The crew replied in unison again. They all moved for the door and Reba came up beside Sloane.

  
"Keep an eye on Arlo. This is his first mission." Reba said. "I can feel his nervousness. If he doesn't calm down, he could jeopardize himself, or even the mission."

  
"I'll talk to him. Besides, Leroy will be there. He'll never let anything happen to his little brother. " Sloane replied looking at the two brothers just ahead of them.

  
"That's why Sirius assigned him on the mission as well. Leroy is protective and will want his brother to grow stronger and will teach him how, but you need to teach both Arlo and Leroy to stay focused on the mission." Reba stopped in the middle of the hall and Sloane stopped with her. "I would have assigned another member to the team, but I'm sure you've noticed we've been short on Eyes lately. The Imperials have really come down hard on us since those rebels destroyed the Death Star. I'm confident you'll be fine, but caution will go a long way these days. "

  
"Don't worry about it, Reeb. I'll make sure everyone is focused and ready for the mission." Sloane said, confidently crossing her arms. "We'll be back before you even have time to miss us." With that, Sloane continued walking alone down the hall towards the hangar. The rest of the crew was undoubtedly there getting ready. She'll have to catch up, debrief them on a more concise plan, and then find time to have a word with Arlo, and possibly Leroy.

  
"Nervous?" Sirius asked Reba. He had crept up so quietly he would have startled anyone, but Reba merely looked over her shoulder and smiled as if she were expecting him.

  
"It's Arlo's first mission. First mission's are always rough, even without the added stress of having to look out for rivals." Reba said, rubbing her chin thoughtfully.

  
"He always was more nervous than Leroy, but he's still tough in his own way. He also knows how to keep it together under pressure, something Leroy still struggles with." Sirius replied. He crossed his arms and watched Sloane disappear into the hangar.

  
"Leroy still has more experience. He'll keep an eye on Arlo and show him the ropes." Reba said. And then she pursed his lips. "I just hope he doesn't become a liability."

  
"Who, Arlo?" Sirius asked.

  
"No, Leroy." Reba said. She turned around and started to walk back into the control room and Sirius followed.

  
"How could Leroy become a liability? You said it yourself, the kid is experienced. He knows what he's doing." Sirius said.

  
"He does, but he's very protective of Arlo. What if he abandons the mission for the sake of his brother. He's been on plenty of missions, but none with his younger brother."

  
"Well, they are close," Sirius said, absentmindedly spinning the map on the holotable. "But if Leroy slips up, Sloane will be there to knock him back in place. Just like you." Sirius smiled at Reba but she was frowning in thought.

  
"Leroy shouldn't have to be corrected though. I fear he might let his attachment to his brother get the better of him and-"

  
"I'll stop you right there." Sirius cut her off. Reba looked up at him. "You're making it sound like Leroy and Arlo being close is a bad thing. Sure Leroy's defensive at times but he's never failed a mission. If shit starts going south, Leroy will know how to get the mission done and keep his brother safe."

  
"And the crew?" Reba said, raising an eyebrow.

  
"Hey, don't you remember that mission in Tatooine? Leroy was the last man standing and he brought the cargo and crew back in one piece. He saved everyone then, he can do it again."

  
Reba nodded and sat down in a chair. She sat pensively for a moment, then nodded her head and folded her hands in her lap, signifying she was at peace with her thoughts. "How's Ronan? I haven't seen him in a while." She finally said as Sirius returned to absentmindedly spinning the map on the holotable.

  
"My boy? Oh, he's good. He's been busy doing missions for the Top Client so that's why you don't see him around much anymore." Sirius sighed and straightened himself. "I miss him, but I couldn't be prouder of him."

  
Reba nodded. "Ronan is hard worker, and is an asset to any team. He's doing good work where he is." She said proudly, and then she frowned a bit. "But, I do miss him, too." Sirius smiled at the added bit.

  
"I'll tell him you said hi the next time I talk to him. I'm sure he'll appreciate it." Sirius said, going back to fidgeting with the holotable.

Reba smiled then looked out the bay window to the docking bay. She could see the crew gathered around the Beast of Burden and watched as Leroy and Arlo sat on some crates. They seemed to be talking and the Sloane approached them. Leroy got up and boarded the ship and Sloane took his place next to Arlo. Reba felt her chest tighten and the word "hypocrite" hissed at her from the back of her mind. Reba had found Sloane as a child alone in the streets of Coronet City on Corellia and took her in. She raised her, then trained her when she came of age to go on missions. She sensed a strength and bravery within Sloane that she knew would carry her far, and pushed her to embrace those skills. However, on the one mission when Sloane was injured Reba flew into an enraged frenzy. She became extremely protective of Sloane after that and was hesitant to let her out of her sight. Reba even tried to stop Sloane from going on missions for fear that she'll become injured again, or worse, but her training was too effective. Sloane was too strong-willed and brave (and stubborn) to sit idly by. Reba was filled with fear whenever Sloane went out on a mission, even more so now that she was running missions alone, but couldn't be more proud of her.

  
"May your instincts guide you," Reba whispered as she watched the crew take off.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! If you've made it this far then, shit, I'm really impressed. Thanks for sticking around! I was inspired to write this after reading a few fics and being disappointed by how they were mostly smut. I admit, I do like some good smut when I'm in the mood, but sometimes I just like to be romanced. A lot of the fics I've read either glaze over the relationship building to get right to the smut or bypass the relationship entirely and cut right to and Mando just fucking a stanger for the hell of it. Again, I have nothing against smut, but I'm more drawn to building relationships, and most importantly character building in stories. I was mostly inspired to do this by a fic my friend sent me called "I Caught Fire" written by a tumblr user named go-commander-kim which I really liked. Especially the beginning where the author summarizes how Mando and the protagonist met. I was particularly interested in the part where Mando says "I loved you ever since you knocked me straight on my ass back on Corellia." Well, what happened on Corellia? I quickly spiraled out of control and wrote a whole damn fic after asking myself that question. This fic is in no way related to "I Caught Fire" by go-commander-kim. They're writing their own series of The Mandalorian fics and I'm writing mine. Other than taking inspiration from that one line about Corellia, this is a completely original (well, as original as a fanfiction can be) work that was birthed from my horrible imagination. I understand if you don't like it, but I at least hope you don't hate it. Thanks for reading! Have a nice day! Oh, and don't be afraid to ask me any questions!


	2. The Rivalry

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Infamous smuggler Sloane Savotta and her crew have successfully landed on Corellia. The crew was on high alert as they navigated their way through the dying city. They retrieved their cargo and cautiously made their way back to their ship while keeping an eye out for the Coronet Bloodless, the ruthless rival gang based in Coronet City. The crew begins to load the cargo as Sloane struggles to shake an unsettling feeling building within her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Congratulations! You made it past the boring exposition! Now THIS is where the real fun begins.

The cargo was almost loaded. Half was already in, and other than the rain, everything was clear. Sloane and her crew had successfully smuggled nearly ten crates of illegal weapons and ammo through the slums of Coronet City to an isolated dock mostly used by other smugglers and ne’er-do-wells. She watched as her crew, three of them, hauled another crate into the cargo bay of the ship, affectionately called the Beast of Burden. Sloane looked around the docks at all the other craft. The dock was on a cliff, and they were tucked in the furthest corner of the dock surrounded by other freighters and gunships. There weren’t this many ships when they arrived on planet. What changed? What made this isolated dock so popular all of a sudden?

  
Sloane glanced back at the boys still loading, apparently having trouble with a particularly heavy crate, then back at the dock. Most of the ships looked empty, their pilots away to do whatever business they had in the city. Occupied or not, they blocked the entrance of the dock. The only way in or out would be to navigate through the maze of ships to the one entrance, which had a single road connecting the dock to the rest of the city. Good for anyone looking to set a trap. Bad for a small crew cornered in the back of the docking bay struggling with cargo.

  
“Hey boss, give a hand?” one of the boys called to Sloane.

  
“What’s up?” She called over her shoulder, still facing the dock.

  
“The crate’s too big. Won’t fit through the entrance. If we try and force it, it’s just gonna get stuck.” he called again. Sloane sighed and finally faced her crew. Leroy was the one who had called out to Sloane. They were gathered at the entrance of the Beast, surrounding a crate that was indeed too wide to fit through hatch.

  
“Can’t you turn it?” Sloane started. Surely there had to be an easier way of getting the crate in the ship. 

  
"It's even wider on the other end. It wont fit through either way." Leroy said with a shrug.

  
Sloane rubbed her chin and thought about it for a moment. "Alright, well then bring it back down. We'll move onto another crate and deal with that one last." The boys struggled to ease it back down the ramp without crushing Tank. Tank was a wookiee, but even he wasn't strong enough to bring the crate down all by himself. Tank was on the lower ground, bracing the crate against his back and Leroy and Arlo held on to it from the top with all their might so the crate wouldn't crush their friend. Together, they all slowly eased back down the ramp. They already had six crates loaded. They were so close to finishing.

  
“Almost got it!” Leroy called. “Just a little farth-”

  
"Could you boys possibly use a hand with your cargo?" a horribly familiar voice interrupted. "Looks like you folks have a lot on your hands. Maybe we could relieve you of some of that load."

  
Sloane couldn't help but snarl at the voice, but she quickly composed herself before turning around to confront the newcomer. "No, Pax, we're fine. Thanks for the offer though, but we're not interested." She gave Pax a fake smile and then turned back around to her crew. She started towards them, but was pulled back and spun around by a firm hand on her shoulder. Sloane remembered Reba's warning to not engage with the Bloodless as she stared in Pax's blue eyes. He was tall, with hair spiked up and a stupid beard that wrapped around his jaw like a chin strap. Sloane used to swoon over Pax when she was a teenager. She thought he was handsome and "tough" as she used to describe him, but slowly grew to understand that "cruel" and "violent" were probably better words to describe him. 

  
"You sure?" Pax asked, giving her a convincingly sincere look, but Sloane had also seen him give a man that look before telling he would let him go and then shot him in the back. "It would pain me to see you all burdened by all this cargo. Let us lighten the load a bit. My treat." 

  
Sloane shrugged away from him and stepped back. "Trust me, we're fine on our own. If you really want to help, you could get lost." She said, trying to ignore Tank's worried growl. 

  
"Oh, but all this cargo. Where did you even get it from? Not a lot of industry in Corellia anymore, and any reputable business wouldn't deal with smugglers." Pax stepped forward towards Sloane, and then another step forward when she took a step back. 

  
"Don't worry about it. We have our business and you have yours." Sloane said. She couldn't see the boys but she hoped they had already gotten the crate down and were hauling in another as quickly as possible. 

  
"Oh, deary. Your business is my business." Pax said, all traces of politeness gone and replaced with a dangerous sneer. "Give us the cargo, Sloane. Just hand it over quietly or we'll be forced to take it by force."

  
Sloane backed up and raised her arms in defense. "Whoa, whoa, whoa! Where is this coming from? What's all this fuss for?" Sloane said, trying her best to sound oblivious. 

  
"We know what's inside, Sloane." Pax growled.

  
"So there's no need to get all worked up over some dry rations. We're just trying to get some supplies over to Navarro. The Imps have them real starved over there." Sloane said backing up again. She could only hope she could keep Pax stalled long enough to buy the boys some time to get at least one more crate onto the ramp. 

  
"Rations?" Pax scoffed. "You honestly expect me to believe that ten armored crates is just a nice little care package?"

  
"Well that's what it fuckin' is, and you said you knew it so I don't know why you're so surprised." All pleasantries ended. Pax grabbed her by the collar and lifted Sloane of the ground so her face was mere inches from his.

  
"Give us the cargo or we'll pry it your cold, dead hands." Pax growled. 

  
"Let go of me Pax," Sloane tried her best to get away from him but he had her raised so that her feet barely touched the ground. She couldn't just shove away or she'll just fall on her ass.

  
"Give up the cargo!"

  
"Let go!" Sloane nailed a punch right into his jaw. Pax let go with one hand which made Sloane stumble a little but she caught herself and shoved Pax away before he could recover. 

  
"Oh, you little-" Pax lunged for Sloane but she ducked away from his grappling hands. She kicked him in his groin and he fell back, and then stomped in the groin again for good measure. 

  
"Boss, you alright?" Leroy called.

  
"I'm fine!" Sloane called back, backing away from Pax but not turning around. 

  
"Do you need-" Leroy started but was cut off by his younger brother yelping. Arlo let go of the crate and shielded his head with his arms as a blaster bolt narrowly missed him. Leroy couldn’t hold the crate on his own and it tipped dangerously towards Tank. He roared in horror and was just barely able to dive out of the way before being crushed. The crate crashed to ground and spilled its contents all over the pavement. The ammo scattered all over and the boys themselves scattered for cover. In the few seconds this all happened, Sloane had ducked behind a ship for cover, instantly pulling out her blaster pistol strapped to her thigh, her other hand hovering over the pistol strapped to her other thigh. She scanned the dock and couldn’t see anything yet, but she could hear the stomping of boots drawing nearer and nearer.

  
_Imps?_ She thought hopefully for the first time ever. Sloane carefully leaned around the nose of the ship to get a better look. It wouldn't have been a surprise if the dock owner had called the Imps as soon as he saw Pax walking onto his dock. Someone ran out from behind a freighter and fired again, wearing a gaudy half-red half-blue jacket. Worse. The native Coronet Bloodless, the rival gang. 

  
"You're done, filth!" Pax snapped as he got to his feet and ran towards his men. "You'll all be hung by the lampposts so everyone learns to not fuck with the Bloodless!" 

  
“Ante up, boys!” Sloane called out. She fired and immediately downed the lone gangster, but he was quickly replaced by two more. Then another two from around the other side of the freighter. They were pouring out from everywhere. Tank roared and found cover across from Sloane and helped return fire.

  
“What about the shipment?” Leroy called back! “The crate opened up!”

  
“We have bigger problems!” Sloan ducked behind the gunship she used as cover and looked back at the Beast with Leroy and Arlo hiding just inside either side of the door. “Return fire! Maybe we can fight them off!” 

  
And just like that their easy mission turned into a firefight. Sloane swore under her breath and pulled out her second pistol. She knew everything was going too well. Never has there ever been an easy mission. A smuggler’s luck always ran out eventually, but this? This was more than bad luck, it was a cruel twist of fate. If there was some deity in sky, they were surely cackling at their own handiwork. Each time a Bloodless was downed another one came. There was a seemingly endless amount of these bastards, and Sloane had the sinking feeling that maybe they couldn’t fight their way out of this one. It was a war of attrition and they were already losing. Tank growled out to Sloane, nodding back towards the shipment scattered across the ground.

  
“Yeah, yeah I know it spilled! Nothing we can do about it now!” Sloane shouted, annoyed by Tank’s distraction.

  
Tank growled again more urgently.

  
“The ammo? What, are you running out?” Sloane looked back at the scattered ammo now. There was a lot, spread all over the ground right in front of the ship. She couldn’t understand why Tank was so focused on it... until a grenade rolled in front of Sloane’s feet. She yelped, quickly kicking it back towards the Bloodless and turning away as it exploded midair. The ammo! If those Bloodless got so much as a single shot into the pile they would all be lost in the explosion! It might even level the whole dock!

  
Sloane braced herself against the gunship. She had to think fast, act fast. Leroy and Arlo had eased themselves out of the Beast. They fired back from behind the four unloaded crates. Tank was firing back as best he could, but couldn’t quite get a good aim with his heavy crossbow around the awkward rear of the ship he was hiding behind. Sloane carefully looked back at the Bloodless surrounding them, drawing closer. Another grenade came flying through the air but Arlo shot it midair. He was a good shot, but still young and brash. He jumped up to cheer for himself and got a blaster bolt to the side for his reward.

  
“Arlo!” Sloane and Leroy called out in unison. Tank roared, stepping out into the open to lay down heavy cover fire as Leroy sprinted to his brother's side.

  
“Is he alright?” Sloane called out. Every millisecond the brothers didn’t respond was too long.

  
“It’s just a flesh wound!” Arlo groaned, clearly in too much pain for it to be just a flesh wound.

  
“It’s deep! He needs help!” Leroy called in a panic.

  
Sloane looked across at Tank who had withdrawn behind cover again. As soon as Tank made eye contact with her she nodded towards the Beast. “Get in there, start the engines! I’ll cover you!”

  
Tank growled back.

  
“We have to get out of here! We have no choice!”

  
Tank growled again.

  
“We’ll just have to take what we have loaded! We don’t have the time load the rest of the crates! Arlo won’t make! Shit, _we_ won’t make it! There’s too many Bloodless! Just start the ship, Tank!”

  
Tank didn’t argue any more. He bee lined for the Beast as Sloane returned fire. It seemed like the amount of Bloodless had nearly doubled from the last time she looked out. She could hear the engines of the Beast roar to life and the Bloodless started firing more frantically. Seemed like those brainless gangsters figured out their plan to escape. Sloane looked back at Leroy and Arlo, still huddled behind the crates.

  
“Can you carry him in, Leroy?” Sloane asked.

  
“Not with all the fire! They’ll shoot us both down!” He called back. The crates were dead center with the Beast. Leroy wasn’t strong enough to carry his brother into the Beast in a timely manner. They’ll have to do things the hard way.

  
“Any grenades in that ammo crate?” Sloane called.

  
“Yeah, a few.”

  
“Roll me some. I’ll create a distraction. That’ll buy some time for you to run in and switch with Tank.” Sloane ordered. Leroy nodded and quickly rolled five grenades to her. “On my signal,” Sloane readied. She looked at at the dock and noticed that most of the Bloodless were grouped behind the freighter. She took a deep breath and threw one grenade over the gunship towards the freighter fuel cells. There was a mighty explosion and lots of shouting. Leroy sprinted inside the Beast and Sloane peeked out around the gunship.  
The freighter was on fire and the Bloodless were scrambling. The shooting had all but stopped as they searched for more cover and tried to flee the fire. Sloane shot a few down as they ran, but she knew it wouldn’t be enough. The fight wasn’t over yet. By the time she looked back Tank was scrambling out of the Beast to Arlo’s side.

  
“I’ll throw another then you go in!” Sloane called to Tank as he picked up a now unconscious Arlo. He looked so small in the wookiee’s arms, like the boy he was when Sloane first met him. He was a young man now, tall and wiry, but Sloane couldn’t help but see him as the giddy little twerp she chased around the compound.

  
_How could I let this happen?_ Sloane thought to herself as she threw another grenade, at the opposite end of the freighter this time. _How could I let my friends get hurt? It’s my job to keep them safe and look at them now! Barely hanging in there..._

  
Sloane couldn’t let herself get too lost in thought. She opened fire, shooting at anything that moved. The Bloodless howled and screamed, confused by the fire and shooting. Some managed to actually fire back, but their bolts went everywhere. At least they didn’t know where Sloane was. Hopefully they still wouldn’t be able to figure it out by the time she made it back to the Beast. Tank had already carried Arlo inside and was giving her cover fire from the door. He roared for Sloane to hurry. Even with the two explosions dwindling their numbers, the Bloodless still had them outnumbered. The Beast had gently lifted, just hovering above the ground in anticipation.

  
“I’m coming! I’m come-” Sloane shouted but was cut off by a blaster bolt speeding past her head. She shrieked and shrunk back against the gunship, looking around frantically for wherever the shot came from. She slowly started backing towards the other end of the gunship since her position was apparently compromised. Tank roared out to Sloane.

  
“I’m fine, it missed me!” She called back. She spotted the shooter! A little Bloodless who had somehow managed to creep around to the other side of the ship Tank used to be at. She fired at him but he ducked back. She shuffled around to the back of the gunship, but that left her exposed to the other Bloodless across the dock, so she sprinted to another ship to her left, out of the way of any Bloodless, but also the Beast.

  
The Beast swung around, hovering just over the railing of the dock. Tank held out his hand and roared for Sloane to jump. Just then, a flurry of blaster bolts headed for the Beast and he had to duck back inside. The Beast veered side to side trying to evade fire, back door still open for Sloane to jump in. Her heart pounded as she watched her friends serpentine around in the ship. She tried to make a run for the ship but was chased back to cover by blaster fire. The Bloodless had found her hiding spot. She could hear them approaching, their footsteps growing louder and louder. “Sloane, come in!” Leroy called through the comms unit on her wrist. “Come in, Sloane! We can’t take any more of this!”

  
“I know!” Sloane replied. She watched as Tank tried to return to fire, but it was hopeless. He couldn’t so much as peek around the corner to aim. “I- I can’t- go without me!”  
“What?” Leroy shouted, stunned. “No, you’re being ridiculous! Just hurry up!”

  
“I won’t make it! There’s too many! Arlo still needs help! Go already!” Sloane, tried her best to sound confident and in control but the truth was she was scared. Never had she ever been in a firefight like this. Shit, the intensity of this fight made her question if she had ever been in a real firefight before. The blaster fire was endless, the Beast was swiveling around so violently but was still taking a beating. There were no other options. If Sloane wanted to see her crew -her friends- to safety, they had to go without her. “Rendezvous back in fou-five days! Five days! Rendezvous at dock six on the other side of town. I’ll be there don’t worry, but you have to go now!” Sloane ordered.

  
“But-”

  
“Now, Leroy! NOW!” And with that Sloane shut off the comms unit. She watched as the bay door closed and the ship flew away, slowly at first, and then shot into hyperspace. She sighed and collapsed against the ship. They were gone. Her friends were safe, but was she?

  
The blaster fire rained heavy on the ship covering Sloane, now that she was their only target. She braced herself and pulled out her last two grenades. She looked at the edge of the dock, where there was a ladder leading to a below level catwalk. If she could make it there, she just might make it out alive. She couldn’t turn around to see where she was throwing, she just threw the grenades blind, hoping she could get a few Bloodless in the explosion, or at least distract them. One grenade directly over the ship, the second where the Beast used to be docked, followed by a dead sprint towards the ladder. She made it to the ladder by the time the first grenade went off. A big explosion, probably blew up a ship. By the time she reached the catwalk, it felt like there was an earthquake. She was thrown back against the catwalk railing and desperately clung to it so she wouldn’t be thrown into the raging ocean below. The explosion mushroomed into the air an otherworldly blue, and sparked other smaller explosions. Did... did she hit the ammo pile? Sloane hadn’t meant to, but it was most definitely the distraction she needed. She went sprinting down the catwalk, didn’t care which direction she was going so long as it was away. As she ran a large bit of shrapnel hit the catwalk and shook the whole thing, causing her to fall. Sloane tried her best to stifle her scream so know one would hear, but when she looked up she saw someone standing at the other end of the catwalk. She quickly drew her blaster thinking it was a Bloodless but... it wasn’t.

  
The darkness wasn’t helping much but the figure most certainly didn’t look like a gangster. For one it was wearing armor, and it looked like it even had a cape, though that could have been a shadow. The moonlight reflected off a shiny, metal head as the figure stared Sloane down from across the catwalk. Was it even a person? Could it have been a droid? Sloane slowly got to her feet, still holding her blaster out. The figure was still, and then turned towards the right and disappeared. Sloane froze, but then realized there must have been a corner up ahead and the figure merely walked around it. She cautiously started jogging forward, blaster at the ready in case the figure came back. Would she have to follow it around the corner? Was it safe to even do that? Sloane heard the Bloodless shouting above. Seemed like they were finally regrouping. She guessed chasing the figure was probably safer than being chased by a mob of gangsters.

  
She slipped her blaster back into the holster and sprinted again. Hooking around the corner the figure went didn't reveal anything interesting. The figure wasn't even there. Just a straight path along the edge of the dock, but it seemed to lead into a cliff wall. Sloane approached it cautiously. Was it a dead end? Was she trapped? Where could the figure have gone if not ahead? She slowly approached the wall, and realized it wasn’t just a wall. There was actually a door there, beside it a panel long since broken and left to decay. The door had been pried open just enough to let someone squeeze through. Sloane looked behind her, then back to the door and pulled out her flashlight to peek through the small opening. Empty. Seemingly a maintenance tunnel or an entrance to the sewer, left open by most likely the figure. She squeezed through the door and (tried to) quietly close the door behind her. She walked into the tunnel, unsure of where she was, or even what to do, but she did know she didn’t have time to stand around and think. She’ll just keep moving forward, go up the first ladder or whatever exit she could find, and then lay low around Coronet City for a while until the fifth day when her friends will return for her.

  
Something splashed just out of sight of the flashlight. Sloane froze and reached for her blaster, listening for a sign of anything. She heard what she thought were quiet footsteps, but couldn’t be sure. “Hello?” She hesitantly asked after a moment of silence. “Is it... you? The figure on the catwalk?” No reply. Was she even talking to someone? Was it just an animal? Was anything even here in the tunnels with her? Sloane slowly moved the light around looking for any sign of life. Maybe she was alone, but still. Sloane still felt like she needed to say something.

  
“Thank you. I know it wasn’t much, but you still helped me,” Sloane said quietly, more to herself than anything else. Her nerves finally began to settle. She was safe, for now at least.

  
_And for now, that’s all I need,_ Sloane thought to herself before carrying onward.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Don't be afraid to ask any questions! I'll answer as quickly as possible!   
> Psst, do you want to know what happens when the rest of the crew gets back to Wandering Eye HQ? Then you should read Reba's Dream, which is a little one shot type deal I wrote about Reba Savotta, one of the leaders of the Wandering Eye and also Sloane's adoptive mother.


	3. The Figure

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sloane survives! After her mission goes awry, Sloane sends her crew away to safety as she drew the fire of the Coronet Bloodless. After meeting a mysterious ally on the catwalk below the dock, Sloane navigates the underground tunnels of her old home, Coronet City. Alone and vulnerable, Sloane looks for an ally in the decrepit city.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sloane and Mando finally have their meet-cute. Isn't it romantic?
> 
> Psst, do you want to know what happens when the rest of the crew gets back to Wandering Eye HQ? Then you should read Reba's Dream, which is a little one shot type deal I wrote about Reba Savotta, one of the leaders of the Wandering Eye and also Sloane's adoptive mother.

Sloane had just about gotten lost in the tunnels until she suddenly found herself in a system she knew like the back of her hand. She was born in Coronet City, and grew up in the streets with the other homeless children picking pockets, begging for food, and often ducking into the sewers and maintenance tunnels for shelter. After recognizing the tunnels, Sloane thought she would be fine, but while the tunnels stayed the same everything above had changed since Reba took her in and she left Coronet City for what Sloane hoped would be the last time. All the streets she had roamed as a child had fallen into decay, businesses abandoned, houses fallen into disrepair. If it weren't for the faded and broken signs Sloane wasn't sure if she would even recognize the city. Sloane thankfully found the Eye in Coronet City who let her crash with him. As she told him the story of the shoot out with the Bloodless, he listened with a troubled grimace. 

  
"They found you at the dock? Did you even see them around the city while you were transporting the cargo?" Vigo asked, the Eye who had secured the cargo. He was a Rodonian, with blue scales and eyes that looked like galaxies. He rubbed his jaw with his suction cup tipped fingers.

  
"No, no one saw them. And let's face it they're hard to miss with those ugly jackets." Sloane said, taking a sip of her tea. "Had you noticed them around the dock?"

  
Vigo sighed. "No, they had disappeared a few days before you arrived. I had actually begun to hope they were gone for good but I guess I should have known better. Those Bloodless leave their stain on every street the walk on." He poured more tea for him and Sloane. "About how many crates do you think they got away with?" 

  
Now it was Sloane's turn to sigh. "I dont know, maybe three or four? If none of them blew up,"

  
"Blew up?" Vigo choked. "What do you mean 'blew up?"

  
"Um, well, you know, I needed to create a distraction and..." Sloane began, scratching the back of her head.

  
"Oh no," Vigo said, dropping his face into his hand.

  
"Hey, it wasn't on purpose! One of the ammo crates had spilled open and I threw some grenades to create a diversion so I could run for cover and I may or may not have hit the spilled ammo! It was an accident, I swear!" Sloane scrambled to explain. Vigo was trembling, and at first she wondered if he was angry but then he threw his head back and laughed.

  
"You blew up the Bloodless!" he cackled. "If you couldn't have the cargo, no one could!" Sloane couldn't help but laugh too. It was kind of funny...

  
"Hey, it was effective." She said shrugging. Sloane took another sip of tea and Vigo's laughter subsided. "They can't come after us if they're all dead."

  
Vigo chuckled and then cleared his throat. "You said you ran for cover, but where to? I thought you the dock was on a cliff and you were on the edge."

  
"We did, but there was a catwalk that ran below the dock on the cliff side. I saw a ladder that led down and I figured wherever it lead must have been safer than trying to fight the Bloodless."

  
"A catwalk? I hadn't known that. Where did it lead?"

  
"The underground. I guess it was an abandaned maintence tunnel or something. I don't know, never been to that part of town before." Sloane said, and then a detail popped into her head. "There was a... person on the catwalk. Someone waiting down there."

  
Vigo looked up. "Really? Who?"

  
"I don't know..." Sloane said. She rubber her jaw and leaned her elbow on the table in thought. "It wasn't Bloodless. They had armor and a cape, I think. Definitely not from around here. Didn't get a good look at them. They were way on the other side of the catwalk and disappeared before I could get a chance to catch up with them."

  
"Armor? Was it a stormtrooper?" Vigo asked.

  
"No, no, definitely not. The helmet was super shiny and wasn't painted. I don't actually know what kind of helmet it was. It was so far away I couldn't get a good look at it." 

  
"Hmmm, shiny," Vigo said. He looked up and rubbed his jaw. "You know, about a day before you guys came, someone had landed on Dock ten. Very old ship, really shiny metal helmet. He was a _Mandalorian_." Vigo said in an almost mystical way. 

  
Sloane leaned across the table, "Really?" she said in awe. "A _real_ Mandalorian? I thought they were all dead."

  
Vigo waved his hand dismissively. "For the most part they are. Who knows, it could have been some random bounty hunter who stole the helmet. Most people who wear the armor nowadays aren't real Mandalorians." He finished his tea and stood up, collecting the empty cups and kettle. "It's getting late. I'll find you a blanket. All I can offer you is the couch unfortunatley."

  
"Oh no, thats fine! Thank you," Sloane said handing him her cup with an appreciative smile. She leaned back in her chair and stared at the ceiling. Could the figure on the catwalk have been the bounty hunter Vigo saw? The one with the Mandalorian helmet? Why was he there on the catwalk? What did he want? Most importantly, who was he after?

* * *

Vigo had warned Sloane not to go out in case the Bloodless were after her, but Sloane wasn't one for staying cooped up in a tiny home wasting daylight. It had only been a day and a half and Sloane was already getting restless, so against all reasoning Sloane went out. Vigo actually worked near dock ten in a weapons repair and dealer shop down the street, and his apartment was down the street from the shop. She decided it would be harmless to walk a measly block down the street to visit Vigo just so she wasn't alone in his, uh, _cozy_ apartment. She entered the shop and Vigo frowned but greeted her nonetheless.

  
"Afternoon, Sloane," 

  
"Hey, Vigo. How's work?" Sloane asked browsing the wall of rifles. 

  
"Slow, but I have a big project to work on anyway. Someone dropped off a broken rifle for repairs, but the problem is I can't seem to find a certain tool I need." He said examining a rifle part in his hands. "Without that tool, I can't properly clean the barrel."

  
"Need help looking for it?" Sloane asked walking towards the counter Vigo was behind. "I can poke around the shop for you."

  
"Thank you, but I think I might have left it at the docks. I was repairing the weapons sysetems on one of the ships and might have left it somewhere there." 

  
"I can go get it for you. Where's it at?" Sloane said excitedly. Finally, something to do, but Vigo quickly started shaking his head and waving his hand dismissivley.

  
"No, you can't go out! The Bloodless are looking for you. Two of them came in as soon as I opened up asking if I had saw you." 

  
"Oh, it's just down the street! I'll be quick, c'mon." Sloane leaned on the counter and smiled at Vigo, who returned it with a frown.

  
"You're a wanted woman, Sloane. The Bloodless won't let up until they find you, and I wouldn't doubt it if they have men at the dock." He put the part down and crossed his arms. "You should just head back to my apartment. It's safest that way."

  
"Vigo, I'll be fine. I'll be in and out real quick. They won't even see me." Sloane said. "When do you need the rifle fixed by?"

  
Vigo eyed her carefully, and then went back to work on the rifle. "I have time," he said vaguely. Sloane smiled. She just might have a way to convince Vigo to let her go.

  
"How much time?" Sloane asked. 

  
Vigo didn't look at her but grimaced, "'Til tonight," he finally said. 

  
"That rifle looks like it needs more work than just the barrel. You sure you'll have time to fix it and go look for the tool before the client picks it up?" Sloane asked.

  
Vigo sighed and put the rifle back down. "You shouldn't go." He said firmly.

  
"Well, it's not like I can fix the rifle for you while you go look." Sloane said. She tried her best not to smile, but she was feeling pretty smug. Vigo glared at her, then sighed again and told her what tool he was looking for and where to find it. Sloane assured him she would find it and return within the hour. Vigo didn't _want_ to send Sloane out. They were friends and he would never forgive himself if she got captured, or _worse_ , while looking for his tool, but she had a point. He didn't tell Sloane, but the client he was repairing the rifle for was the bounty hunter he saw the other day. The one with the shiny Mandalorian helmet. Honestly, Vigo was afraid of him the moment he stepped in his shop to drop the rifle off. He made it very clear he needed it fixed tonight for "business matters." Vigo wasn't sure what this bounty hunter's business was, but he knew he didn't want to be his next matter of business. He sighed as he watched Sloane leave the shop, and was worried every second she was gone. 

  
Sloane, on the other hand, was not in the slightest bit worried. In fact she hummed as she walked and searched for the tool. She had no idea what it was but Vigo had described it well enough and told her where to look for it so she was confident she would find it. He said it would be by a green gunship the shape of a triangle with a domed cockpit. She found it easy enough and started searching for the tool, which she also found easy enough. She picked it up and flipped it in her hands. 

  
_See?_ she thought. _That wasn't very hard at all_. _I don't know what Vigo was so worried about._ And then she gasped and ducked behind the gunship as she saw exactly what Vigo was worried about. Two Bloodless were talking to the worker in the booth by the entrance of the dock, and holding up a hologram of her face. Sloane pressed herself against the gunship and carefully peeked around the nose of the ship. The worker in the booth scratched his head with one arm, waved two others about as he spoke, and had his fourth hand planted firmly on his hip. He finally shrugged with all four shoulders. After a brief moment of exchange, the dock worker went back to his holoprojected comedy as the Bloodless entered the dock, presumably to search for Sloane. 

  
_Aw, fuck_ , Sloane thought to herself as she tucked the tool into and empty loop on her utility belt. _Vigo_ had _to be right._ She crouched and crept towards the other end of the gunship and peeked around. The Bloodless were still near the front all the way towards the left side of the dock. Sloane wasn't too far away from them actually, way in the back maybe thirty feet away. She looked around at the dock and noticed it was quite crowded. Maybe, if she was careful, she could sneak around and get to the other side of the dock to the right entrance without being noticed. Sloane looked back at the Bloodless and saw that they were still at the same ship talking to the pilot. She figured she could pull it off and started creeping towards the ship next to her. 

  
Sloane crept around the back of the dock, occasionally looking back just to make sure the Bloodless weren't behind her. She had moved maybe sixty feet and ducked behind maybe the oldest gunship she had ever seen. It had two engines held out to the side and bay doors on either side. She had never seen anything like it, and if weren't for the guns sticking out the front she wouldn't have even guessed it was a gunship. It was rusting and covered in carbon scoring but if it had docked here then it somehow must have still been in flying condition. _I'll have to ask Sirius about this old thing,_ Sloane thought to herself. Sirius loved ships, especially old ones. He could name any ship he laid eyes on and tell you where it was built, what model it was, and the year it came out. She had crept around to its port side and was about to move on when she heard a loud clanking. Sloane gasped and pressed her front against the ship, practically hugging it. There was a large hovering palette of small boxes behind her so she new the noise didn't come from there and her back was covered. She waited quietly for anymore sound, and then slowly crouched down to look under the ship for any boots. Nothing. She stood up and the slowly looked up to the top of the ship and sighed in relief. It was just a fat bird that landed on the top of the ship. Sloane chuckled to herself and shook her head at the bird, who looked down at her with neon orange eyes slowly drifting in different directions. Sloane sighed again and took a step back, right into a cold barrel of a blaster waiting just for her.

  
Sloane stood frozen. The barrel was pressed firmly into the center of her upper back, right along the spine. Her flight or fight responses should have been kicking in by now but she was completely locked with fear and she could do was tremble. She swallowed hard and her fingers twitched. She didn't know what to do and was too afraid to move so she just stood frozen. Finally, the barrel pulled away, but then jabbed right back to the same spot. 

  
"Hands up." came a low, modulated voice. Sloane slowly raised her hands, keeping them as far from her sides as possible so the aggressor wouldn't think she was trying to grab for anything on her belt. She tried to keep them from shaking, but even still they trembled. "Turn around." The voice said again. Sloane swallowed hard and slowly did as the voice said. She wasn't sure why but she was afraid to look up so she kept her eyes to the ground. When she turned to face the gun wielder all she saw were boots, a heavy belt, and a brown painted chest plate. She was determined to keep her eyes down, but the barrel of the gun had moved to her chin and forced her to look up. Her breath caught when she finally saw the head of the person behind the gun. Instead of seeing a face, she saw a shiny, metal helmet, unpainted. Round at the top, the sides came straight down with indentations to look like sculpted cheekbones. In the center of the helmet was a T-shaped visor that extended all the way to the bottom of the of the helmet. Sloane had only seen this helmet in pictures. Reba said she knew a man who wore this helmet everyday for his entire life. The man standing before her was a Mandalorian. The Mandalorian tipped his head to side a bit as he examined her face, the barrel of the gun still under her chin. Sloane wasn't sure what he was reading on her face but she prayed he didn't know how afraid she was. 

  
"What are you doing near my ship?" He finally asked, his voice distorted by his helmet's modulator. Sloane didn't answer at first, so he tapped her chin with his pistol and said "Well?"

  
"I was just walking past." Sloane finally blurted out, and then she suddenly found herself rambling in panic. "It's an old ship, I just wanted to take a closer look at it. Pre-Empire right? Has to be, I haven't seen anything like it. I've seen a lot of gunships in my day but none like this. This really is one of a kind. How old is it? How long have you had it fo-"

  
"That's enough." The Mandalorian cut her off and Sloane immediately shut up. "Why are you sneaking around the dock?"

  
"I'm not sneaking!" Sloane said. _Shit, how did he know?_

  
"Yes you are." The Mandalorian tersely replied. Any other day Sloane would have quipped back but she wasn't in the mood to be a smartass at the moment. "Why are you near my ship?" he asked again, more forcefully this time and jabbed the barrel of the pistol into her chest. Sloane's chest tightened and her heart began to race.

  
"Like I said," Sloane said, trying her best to sound calm. "I'm just passing through. I want no business with your ship, I just want to get by." At moments like these Sloane would try to look her opponent in the eye, but since he was wearing a helmet she could only stare back into the reflections of her own terror filled eyes. The Mandalorian didn't reply. Instead he kept his pistol at her chest and stared back at her. Sloane couldn't stand his intense stare. Her cheeks flushed with heat and she looked away. 

  
"I know you," the Mandalorian finally said. Sloane jumped at this and looked back at him. He knew her? How the hell did her know her?

  
"How?" Sloane finally managed to ask. 

  
The Mandalorian pulled his pistol back a little. He was still holding it to her chest but it wasn't pressed against her anymore. "The other night, at the dock outside of the city. I saw you." He said and Sloane's breath caught. "You were in a firefight with your crew, and they left you behind."

  
Sloane's head shook the slightest bit. "No, I- I told them to! We weren't all going to make it out if they waited for me. I told them to go!" 

  
"Really?" He said, tipping his head to the side again. 

  
Sloane nodded furiously. "Yes, I told them to go. We needed to get the cargo out of there. If they hadn't left the Bloodless would have shot them down and stolen everything." For a second Sloane thought she could talk her way out of this, but the Mandalorian seemed to perk up at the word "Bloodless." With the helmet hiding his facing, she couldn't tell if it was a good or bad reaction.

  
"The Bloodless?" He repeated. His head straightened.

  
"Yes," Sloane quietly said. "They were the ones shooting at us." Sloane could feel cold sweat dripping down her back like cold fingers tickling her spine. She had a _bad_ feeling about this...

  
"The Bloodless are looking for a girl like you," The Mandalorian said, adjusting his grip on his pistol. "And I need an in with the Bloodless."

  
"Wait-" Sloane said, freezing up again. 

  
"I can bring you in hot," the Mandalorian cut her off again, raising the pistol to point it at Sloane's face "Or I can bring you in cold." Sloane stared at her eyes in the reflection of the Mandalorian's helmet. They were wide with fear, the pupils only pinpricks. Her eyes stung with tears and her lip trembled. Was this it? Was this bounty hunter going to turn her in to the Bloodless? Or kill her himself?She looked back at her eyes and saw the fear, and then she heard the words of her adoptive mother whisper into her ear. 

  
"Don't let your fear control you," Reba once told her. "If you can control your fear, you can control the situation." Sloane grit her teeth and glared at the Mandalorian.

  
"You'll never take me," she growled, and the Mandalorian was taken aback by her sudden shift in demeanor. Sloane grabbed the Mandalorians wrist and raised it above her head. The pistol fired off and hit the side of his ship. 

  
"What the-" the Mandalorian said but for once Sloane cut him off by pulling him towards her by the wrist, twisting in towards his chest, and delivering a swift blow to throat with her elbow all in one motion. The Mandalorian gagged and reached for his throat and stumbled back. Sloane shoved past, knocking him onto his back and ran for the palette of boxes piled into the shape of a pyramid. She started climbing them and a blaster bolt whizzed by her head. Sloane started throwing and kicking boxes back at the Mandalorian which she knew wouldn't do much damage, but judging by the grunting, swearing and metallic thuds she heard behind her it was at least distracting him. Sloane finally reached the top of the pyramid and another bolt whizzed by the other side of her head. She whipped around and the Mandalorian had his pistol pointed right at her. If she were to just try and run he would shoot her down no problem. Sloane had stupidly left her blasters at Vigo's place because she thought walking around with them would draw unwanted attention. She didn't have the means to fire back, but she did have the higher ground. 

  
Sloane jumped right as the Mandalorian fired another shot. The bolt flew right under her as she soared through the air. She braced for impact and landed right on top of the Mandalorian. One foot on his shoulder and the other right in the center of his chest, she flattened him on the ground. As she stepped off him she kicked his pistol out of his hand and stomped on his groin just to keep him down. His pistol slid under the ship so she knew he wasn't going to be able to get it faster than she could run. She then ran to the other side of the hovering palette as the Mandalorian struggled to get up and tipped the rest of the boxes onto him. Sloane bolted for the exit abandoning any stealth she may have had left. 

  
The Mandalorian roared and threw all the boxes aside. He saw her sprinting for the exit and reached for his rifle on his back... but it wasn't there! He had taken it in for a tune up and to fix the scope. He looked for his pistol but couldn't find it, and by the time he looked back up to try the grapple on his gauntlet the girl was already gone. "Fuck!" he shouted and kicked a box. Two men in the ugliest red and blue jackets came running around the nose of his ship, blasters out. 

  
"Where'd she go?" One shouted. 

  
"She ran for the exit!" the Mandalorian said swinging his arm out to the far entrance.

  
"Where's she going?"

  
"The fuck if I knew!" the Mandalorian snapped. The two men ran for the exit as the Mandalorian angrily pushed a button on his gauntlet to open the bay door of his ship. He stormed up the ramp and locked the door behind him. He threw his helmet across the ship and it hit the panel activating the door to his poor excuse of a cot but he didn't care. He just paced around angrily swearing under his breath and cursing the girl. You know, he had actually kind of liked her. He was at the other side of dock twelve stalking his bounty when the firefight broke out. He had watched his bounty approach the girl, grab her by the neck, and then watched as she fought him off. Her and her crew fought pretty decently seeing how the odds were stacked heavily against them. He thought it was clever when the girl started throwing grenades to scatter the enemy lines. When he saw that the ship had taken off without her, he actually felt bad. That's why he left the door open for her when he saw her on the catwalk. He thought she deserved a chance to get away from the gang, but now? The Mandalorian hoped those gangsters caught up to her. 

  
The Mandalorian covered his face with his hands and groaned with exasperation and embarrassment. She wasn't even armed and she somehow took him down! That sniveling smuggler who nearly cried when he held her at gunpoint took down _him_ , a trained Mandalorian! He pulled his hands away from his face and crossed the ship to pick up his helmet. He put it back on and climbed the ladder up to the cockpit. He sat down at the pilots seat and opened up his bounty pucks. One for Paxton Holderon, and one for his son Pax, the leaders of the Bloodless gang. They had been a thorn in the Empire's side and they were willing to pay a generous amount for both of them. Considering how the two were always surrounded by their goons the Mandalorian knew he couldn't just shoot his way through. When he realized that the girl sneaking around his ship was the same girl the Bloodless were after, the one in the firefight the night before, he figured he could use her as bait to get him an audience with Paxton. He wasn't going to kill her, just needed to drag her around for a bit. Bring her in for the small reward, and them claim his real bounty. Without the girl, he was going to need to think of a new plan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> MANDO APPEARS! I had a lot of fun writing this chapter. Well, I have fun writing in general, but I was especially excited for this chapter! The scene where Mando holds Sloane at gunpoint, and then she climbs the stack of boxes and jumps down on him was one of the first scenes I ever planned out, and it was so satisfying to see it come to life! Thanks for making it this far! As always, don't be afraid to ask questions! I'll always try and answer as quickly as possible!


	4. The Weapon Smith

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sloane narrowly escapes death again! While trying to escape the Bloodless again, Sloane encounters the same mysterious figure she met on the catwalk. The mysterious Mandalorian bounty hunter tried to turn her in to the Bloodless, but using her quick wit she escapes from both him and the Bloodless. She returns to safety as the Mandalorian plots his next course of action in his ship.

The Mandalorian was too frustrated to think. He was still pissed off about the scuffle with the smuggler earlier. He should have just knocked her out when he had the chance instead of messing around with her. Instead he literally got jumped and watched the girl run away. That was a few hours ago and it was dark out now. The Mandalorian had no idea what the time was but he figured it was a good time to check with the weapon smith. He had left his rifle with him to fix the scope and tune it up. His original plan was to search the area he was told the Bloodless base was and hoped that after a while of reconnaissance he would be able to figure out a way to single out Paxton and his son, and it looks like he'll have to return to that plan so that rifle better be fixed. 

  
The streets by the dock were empty but in the distance he could see the busier parts of the city throbbing with life. The weapon smith was fortunately a block away from the dock, and also offered services to repair weapons systems on ships. Whoever the owner was a clever and skilled man, and probably could find a better job elsewhere if he ever left the planet. The Mandalorian entered the shop and the weapons smith was already in the front. The Rodonian greeted the Mandalorian with a worried smile. 

  
"Welcome back, sir! How was your day?" he asked politely.

  
The Mandalorian frowned, not that the weapon smith could see. "Fine. Is my rifle ready?" he said. He just wanted to go in and out. No small talk, no bullshit.

  
"All the repairs done! It's just being polished in the back, it will be out in a moment. Is there anything else I can help you with in the meantime?" the weapon smith asked.

  
"Yeah, I'll need some ammo." the Mandalorian said. He looked around the shop as the weapons smith gathered his ammo. No one else was in the shop, or even the street for that matter. The shop was empty and all you could hear was a quiet radio and the shuffling of the weapon smith. The door to the back room opened and a girl stepped out holding the Mandalorian's rifle.

  
"Vigo, the rifle's ready to go-" the smuggler from earlier started before stopping mid sentence to point the rifle at the Mandalorian, who already had his pistol drawn. The weapons smith dropped the ammo in his hand and jumped in between the two duelers.

  
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, settle down now!" Vigo said holding out his hands to either opponent. "What is the meaning of this?"

  
"That's the fucker who jumped me at the dock!" Sloane shouted. Earlier that day when Vigo asked why she was out of breath upon her return, she told him the truth about the Bloodless and the encounter with the bounty hunter, but she never specified which one. Sloane was honestly afraid that if she spoke about him, then rumors would spread and the Mandalorian would come hunting after her just to keep his reputation. Seeing him in the shop now certainly made it seem that way.

  
" _I_ jumped _you_? You're the one who struck first!" The Mandalorian snapped back. He stepped forward towards the counter and the smuggler took a step towards him despite the weapon smith's attempts to push her back.

  
"You had me at gunpoint and threatened to turn me in to the Bloodless. How the fuck else was I supposed to react?" Sloane stepped forward again and Vigo stepped closer to her, this time putting a hand on her shoulder and forcing her back. 

  
"Enough! Enough!" Vigo said. He grabbed the barrel of the rifle and tugged it away from Sloane's shoulder so she wouldn't be able to aim it at the Mandalorian. "Give me the rifle."

  
"No, he's dangerous-" Sloane argued pulling rifle back. Vigo wrenched the rifle from her hands. 

  
"He's the _client_." He said turning to the Mandalorian. "Please sir, lower your blaster." Vigo said reaching out and putting his hand over the barrel of the pistol. The Mandalorian tensed up for a second, and then slowly lowered his blaster, but didn't put it back in the holster. "Thank you. Now please, let's get you settled and on your way." Vigo walked to the register with the rifle and looked at the Mandalorian expectantly. The Mandalorian didn't move or even notice the weapon smith. He instead stood where he was returning Sloane's glare. Vigo sighed and turned to Sloane. "Sloane, will you please?" He said impatiently, gesturing to the back door. Sloane gave the Mandalorian one last snarl before disappearing into the backroom.

  
The Mandalorian set his blaster on the counter and impatiently tapped his fingers. The weapon smith set the rifle on the counter next to the ammo. "I'm so sorry for the sudden confrontation. I assure you Sloane is usually, ah, better behaved. She's been on edge all day, you'll have to excuse her." He said. "The total will be 1,260 credits. The ammo is on me." He gave the Mandalorian a warm smile, though he couldn't tell how much he appreciated it given the helmet. 

  
"I didn't know she worked for you." The Mandalorian said, handing the weapon smith the payment. 

  
"We... work for the same company, but she's not my employee." the weapon smith said putting the ammo in a crate for the Mandalorian. "Again, I'm sorry for her behavior. I promise, she won't get in your way again. I hope your business goes well." 

  
"And yours," the Mandalorian said taking the crate. He strapped the rifle to his back and picked up the ammo crate. He went for the door, but then a thought occurred to him. "Do you do business with the Bloodless?"

  
The weapon smith quickly shook his head. "No, it's best not to do business with gangs. Brings unwanted attention from the police, and even the Empire."

  
"Do you know where I can find someone who does?" the Mandalorian asked.

  
The weapon smith pursed his lips and carefully eyed the Mandalorian. "It may not be my place to say, but I would advise against you seeking out the Bloodless. If you're looking for work, the Guild does operate in this system. You should seek business with them." 

  
"I'm not looking to join the Bloodless, I just need some information." the Mandalorian said. He moved to step out the door but then the weapon smith stopped him. 

  
"Wait!" he called out. The Mandalorian looked over his shoulder at him. The weapon smith rubbed his hands together and waved the Mandalorian over. The weapon smith looked past the Mandalorian to check the street, and then leaned in close. "What kind of information do you need?" he said quietly.

  
"I have some bounties on them. I just need to know how to get at them." the Mandalorian replied just as quietly. The weapon smith looked at the street again, and then back at the door that led to the backroom. 

  
"Meet me here tomorrow night after I close. I'll tell you everything you need to know." The weapon smith said quietly. Then he straightened himself and gestured towards the door. "So long, my friend! Good luck with your work!" He announced loudly. He smiled at the Mandalorian, and then waved him goodbye as he left the shop. The weapon smith sighed and stroked his crest before walking into the workshop. There he found Sloane sulking in a chair with her feet kicked up on the desk.

  
"Did he leave?" Sloane asked, not even looking at Vigo. 

  
"Yes. You know, you really should stop picking fights. One of these days, you're not going to win." Vigo said sitting in a stool on the opposite side of workshop and facing Sloane. She rolled her eyes.

  
"You didn't tell me the client was the Mandalorian." She said, finally looking at Vigo. He shrugged.

  
"You didn't tell me he was the one who held you at gunpoint." Vigo said, then smiled when Sloane couldn't think of anything smart to say. "From now on, I want you to stay at my apartment. Got it?" 

  
Sloane sighed and stood up. "Yeah, got it. Need help closing up for the night?" No more customers came in that night. They closed up quickly and quietly and returned to the apartment without incident. That night when Vigo was asleep she stood at the window in the front room and looked at the dock from a distance. She couldn't make out any of the ships but she knew the Mandalorian was there. She sighed and threw herself onto the couch, letting her face be buried in the pillow. She was frantic when she returned to the shop after escaping from the dock. Vigo sat her down in the back and she explained everything to him. After about an hour of hiding in the back they blissfully came to the realization that Sloane hadn't been followed back to the shop by the Bloodless or the bounty hunter. Vigo finished fixing the rifle, and then gave it to Sloane to clean and polish so she would have something to focus on other than her nerves. Sloane thought she had narrowly escaped death, but when she saw the Mandalorian in the shop and how quickly he had drawn his blaster she thought he was there to finish her off. Sloane buried herself deeper into the pillow and pulled the blanket over her head. She hoped she never saw that Mandalorian again. She just wanted to get off this damned planet and never return. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! As always, don't be afraid to ask questions! I'll always try to answer them as quickly as possible :)


	5. The Enemy of an Enemy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Mandalorian visits Vigo's weapon shop to pick up his damaged blaster and has another run in with the smuggler, Sloane. Thankfully, Vigo was there to mediate the conflict and all parties left safely. Before the Mandalorian leaves the shop, Vigo the weapon smith promises to give him valuable information about the Coronet Bloodless to help him in his bounty mission. The Mandolorian returns tonight to meet with Vigo as promised.

Sloane woke up to Vigo gently shaking her. "Wassup?" she mumbled rubbing her eyes. 

  
"I made breakfast," Vigo said. He set a plate down on the coffee table and knelt down in front of Sloane so he could be at eye level with her. "I have to go to work. If I need to contact you, I'll call you through this communicator," He said holding it out for Sloane to see and then set it onto the table next to the plate. 

  
"Oh, thanks," Sloane said, sitting up. "Hey, before you go, do you have a holoprojector? I should really get in contact with Reba." 

  
"Of course, I have a home system in the hall. I'm not sure how well the connection will be but you're welcome to use it." Vigo said. He stood up and told Sloane he'll be home a little later than usual on account of a business meeting and left for work. Sloane slowly ate breakfast and watched the news. There wasn't anything about the incident yesterday at the docks but the news was still buzzing about the explosion at Dock twelve. Luckily, it was all pinned on the Bloodless and gang rivalries. The politicians spouted the same speeches about blaster control and gang violence that they did when Sloane was a child, but she could clearly see they still weren't doing about it. When Sloane finished eating she did the dishes, showered, and booted up Vigo's holoprojector. It was outdated and took forever to load up but she finally managed to punch in the coordinates to the Wandering Eye base. Unfortunately, the connection was weak and she couldn't get through. After a frustrating while, Sloane gave up and tried a different person. 

  
She punched in the code to Ronan's ship and tapped her fingers in anticipation as she waited for the holoprojector to connect. Ronan was Sirius's son, and practically Sloane's brother. They grew up together, were trained together, and mostly went on missions together but Ronan had been doing a lot of work with Top Client lately. Sloane had no idea how Ronan managed to get an in with them, but Sirius was very supportive of his son so she didn't question it. The connection went through and although Ronan didn't pick up Sloane was relieved it was at least able to reach him. "Ronan, I'm not sure what you know about the mission in Coronet City but I'm still here. I'm with Vigo Rutan and I told my crew not to come back for me until five days had passed. It's been two days already and I haven't heard from HQ and I can't get reach them either so I'm relying on you to relay my message to Reba. I'm fine but the Bloodless are all over the place looking for me and I really need to get out of here before they find me. Contact me at this holoprojector..." Sloane gave him the code and sent the message. All she could do now was hope Ronan would see it and respond. Until then, it looked like Sloane had a whole lot of waiting around to do. 

* * *

The Mandalorian had spent the day scoping out the Bloodless base. It's exact location was unknown but he narrowed it down to the old ship building district. The locals were hesitant to talk about the Bloodless, and the Mandalorian noticed at least one Bloodless gang member every few blocks. He was surprised by their presence. They seemed more common than the police in Coronet City. After a few hours wandering the streets, he returned to his ship and mapped out the city and possible locations for the base the best he could, which unfortunately wasn't saying much. He gave up when it starting getting dark and headed for the weapons shop. He was a bit early, but he was tired of waiting and hoped the weapons smith would understand. He left the dock, rounded the corner and stopped dead in his tracks. Up ahead he saw two men in the Bloodless jackets drag a body out of the weapons shop and into a speeder. It was the weapons smith! The gangsters were taking him!

  
"Hey!" the Mandalorian shouted and charged the gangsters. They spun around, dropped the weapons smith and opened fire. The Mandalorian ducked into an alley and pulled his rifle out. He returned fire as one gangster struggled to throw the weapons smith into the back of the speeder and the other covered him. The Mandalorian's shots were accurate, but the Bloodless gangster fired rapidly and without abandon. The Mandalorian spent more time ducking behind the wall than actually firing back. He heard one of the gansters shout at the other to get in the speeder, and the Mandalorian scrambled to pull a tracker out of belt. He leaned around the corner with the tracking unit in hand and then immediately ducked back as a volley of blaster bolts came flying towards him. The speeder flew by and the Mandalorian had to throw himself on the ground to take cover from the drive-by shooting. He got up and ran into the middle of the street but by then the speeder was gone. He sighed, slung his rifle onto his back and put the tracker away. He turned around and cautiously headed towards the weapons shop. 

  
The Mandalorian drew his pistol and jumped into the doorway with it raised. The shop was empty and dark, but he still moved quietly. Glass crunched under his boot and the Mandalorian looked around. The shop was in disarray. The merchandise was thrown all over the floor and some of the shelves were broken. The glass case under the front counter was shattered with the glass scattered all over the floor. Nothing appeared to be stolen, so the Mandalorian was only left to assume the gangsters were only here for the weapon smith. The Mandalorian turned on the flashlight on the side of his helmet and cautiously moved to the the back room with his pistol raised. The door didn't open when he approached it. He looked for a panel by the door but there wasn't any. The Mandalorian went to check the counter for a panic button. If the weapon smith had pressed it then that would explain why the back door was locked. It would also mean that the police were on their way. He knelt down behind the counter and searched the underside.

  
"Who's there?" an annoyingly familiar voice called out. The Mandalorian didn't move as he realized that him searching a dissheveled, broken-into shop wasn't a good look for him. "Show yourself!" the voice called again.

  
"It's not what it looks like." The Mandalorian called out. 

  
"Oh, of course it's you." Sloane said. She's had enough of this bounty hunter. Sloane was drifting off in Vigo's apartment when she heard static comming from the communicator. She heard clips of his voice and then the communicator went silent. Sloane tried to reply but Vigo wouldn't respond. She then heard the distant sound of blaster fire and scrambled around the apartment. She knew the only explanation was that he was under attack. She stumbled into some pants and her boots and grabbed the nearest blaster she could find and ran out into the misty night. Sloane sprinted down the street to Vigo's shop, blaster ready, and expected to see the Bloodless, but wasn't too surprised to see the Mandalorian instead. "What did you do?" she demanded.

  
"Nothing! The Bloodless were here. They took the weapon smith-" the Mandalorian tried to explain.

  
"His _name_ is Vigo," Sloane snapped stepping into the store, pointing the gun squarely at the Mandalorian's chest.

  
"Fine. They took Vigo. I came right as they took off with him. I was trying to help him, I swear." The Mandalorian said. He had put his pistol down when searching the counter, and was afraid of making any sudden movements in case the smuggler got trigger happy. 

  
"Why should I believe you?" Sloane said snidely. "You _are_ looking for an in with the Bloodless after all." She took another step forward, and the Mandalorian flinched and slowly began to raise his hands. Sloane couldn't help but smirk as the Mandalorian struggled for words.

  
"I..." The Mandalorian started, suddenly regretting the little brawl he had with the smuggler the day before. He shook his head and tried again. "That was before- Vigo was trying to help me. I have bounties on the Bloodless and he said he would tell me all I needed to know." The Mandalorian finally said. He figured now was probably the best time to come clean with the smuggler, even if it pained him to do it. 

  
"You have bounties on the Bloodless? Then why did you want an in with them?" Sloane asked shocked. First this bastard was trying to turn her in to the Bloodless, and now he was trying to kill them? _This guy is either an idiot or he thinks I'm the idiot,_ Sloane thought to herself. 

  
"I need to get close to Paxton Holderon and his son. I figured the best way to get close to them would be to get on their good side." The Mandalorian said. 

  
"Wait, wait, wait. You mean to tell me you have a bounty on the Bloodless _leaders_?" Sloane said. She walked right up to the counter in stunned curiousity. Was he serious? Sloane pointed her blaster at the Mandalorian. "Show me the bounty pucks." she demanded. When the Mandalorian didn't move she jabbed him in the chest with barrel with the blaster and said "Show me." 

  
"Alright," the Mandalorian said, taken aback by her sudden aggression. He was glad he had the helmet to hide the fact his cheeks were burning as he realized this was the exact same way he had treated her the day before. He pulled out the pucks and set them on the counter. The blue holograms of Paxton and Pax Holderon glowed in the dark shop and illuminated the smuggler's face. The Mandalorian watched as she picked up the puck for Paxton and observed it. After a moment, the smuggler looked up at the Mandalorian and eyed him carefully. 

  
"Who sent you?" Sloane asked suspiciously. 

  
"I work for the Guild. I don't ask who sent out the bounties, only who to hunt." the Mandalorian said. 

  
"Fair enough." Sloane said setting the puck down on the table. She wasn't too familiar with the Bounty Hunters' Guild rules but that seemed right. The pucks were real alright, and if this bounty hunter was succesful, then this could really be good for Sloane and the Wandering Eye. Before Sloane could speak sirens could be heard in the distance. Sloane looked over her shoulder, and then shoved the pucks back towards the Mandalorian and went behind the back counter. 

  
"Where are you going?" The Mandalorian said scrambling to put the bounty pucks away and pick up his pistol.

  
"I'm in enough trouble as is, I don't need to get arrested." Sloane said. She pressed the manual override button on the the side of the door frame to the workshop. The door opened up and Sloane stepped through, but then stopped when she noticed the Mandalorian just standing still behind the counter. "Um, are _you_ trying to get arrested?" Sloane asked him. The Mandalorian jumped and quickly followed after her. Once they we were in the work shop, Sloane opened the back door of the shop and looked both ways down the alley before waving the Mandalorian through. The back alley was empty and the sirens were getting louder. When the Mandalorian looked down the left side of the street he could even see the flashing red and blue lights of the police speeders in the distance quickly approaching. 

  
"Give me a hand with this." Sloane said. The Mandalorian turned around and saw the smuggler struggling to open a sewer grate. He took it from her and dragged it the side. 

  
"You go first. I'll close it behind us," he said. The smuggler climbed down the ladder, he climbed down after her. Just as he was closing the sewer grate the police lights were shining from either side of the shop and he could hear the police rushing into the shop. When he finally got to the bottom of the ladder, the smuggler started running down the tunnel, waving for him to follow. 

  
"We don't have to go far, just follow me." Sloane said. 

  
"Why are you suddenly helping me?" The Mandalorian asked running after her.

  
"Because, we have a common enemy." Sloane said. Thankfully the tunnel systems mirrored the streets above, so she knew exactly where she was going. She just had to hope there was a ladder that led up to where she wanted to go. "I don't _want_ to help an ass like you, but if this is what it takes to get rid of the Bloodless, then so be it." 

  
"You're helping me just to get a bounty off your head?" the Mandalorian said dryly.

  
"No, I'm helping you because, one, the Bloodless are a ruthless crime syndicate the galaxy will be better without. Two, they're a rival of my crew. And three, yeah, sure it would be nice to not be killed and have my body hung on a streetlamp by the Bloodless." Sloane said bluntly. The Mandalorian didn't say anything after that. Sloane stopped at a ladder and turned to face the Mandalorian. "Any more questions?"

  
"How do you plan on helping me?" the Mandalorian asked, crossing his arms. 

  
"Well, I saved you from being arrested, didn't I?" Sloane said snidely. She crossed her arms and tried to look at the Mandalorian down her nose, but he was taller so it didn't really work. "My crew used to be allied with the Bloodless, but we split from them when they started trafficking. Anything Vigo could tell you, so can I."

  
"Is Vigo a part of your crew?" the Mandalorian asked.

  
"Yes, but he switched to us after leaving the Bloodless. He stays here in Coronet City to keep an eye on Bloodless activity." Sloane said. She gestured to the ladder. "Can you climb up there and open the grate?" The Mandalorian silently did so. They were in another alleyway. Sloane climbed ladder, but on the third rung from the top her foot slipped and she could feel herself falling back down. Sloane gasped and reached her hand up in a desperate attempt to catch one of the rungs, but the Mandalorian caught her wrist instead. He pulled her up and shut the sewer grate. Sloane was surprised. She was sure the Mandalorian was just going to let her fall. Shit, she would have let him fall if it were the other way around, but he didn't. Sloane chalked it up to her helping him escape when the police were coming. 

  
"Where to now?" The Mandalorian asked. 

  
"Just follow me," Sloane said. She rounded the corner onto the main street, and sure enough they were two blocks south from Vigo's apartment. The street was mostly empty except for some men standing outside of a bar across the street. Sloane walked with the Mandalorian quietly in tow. As they got closer she could hear the bass from loud music coming from the bar and the men standing outside drunkenly talking to each other. The drunks stopped talking to watch them pass. 

  
"Man-DOOOOOOO!" one of them shouted, pointing right at the Mandalorian. She couldn't understand what he said next because he was either so drunk he couldn't talk right or he was speaking another language entirely. The other man pointed to Sloane, shouted something as well, and then they both cackled and whooped. Sloane couldn't tell what they were saying but she knew a catcall when she heard one. She stopped to snap something at them, but the Mandalorian walked right past, not even paying attention to the drunks. He hesitated a few steps ahead to look back at Sloane expectantly, so set her jaw and kept walking as well.

  
Sloane stopped at the corner a block ahead. She turned to the Mandalorian and pointed across the street. "Go down the block that way and turn left and you'll be at dock ten." she said. She turned back to the Mandalorian and smirked. "I really hope you get the Holderons. You'll be doing a lot of people a huge favor."

  
The Mandalorian nodded. "I hope so too," was all he said before crossing the street. Sloane sighed and wrapped her arms around herself. It was cold, windy, and starting to rain and she didn't have a jacket. She was only wearing a loose fitting tank top that did nothing to keep her warm. She watched the Mandalorian disappear around the corner, and then she turned the corner she was at and walked to Vigo's apartment building. As she opened the door to the front entrance she looked down the street at Vigo's shop. Two police speeders were parked up front. The lights were on in the shop as the officers searched it. Sloane sighed and turned her face to the sky. When she was a child, she was told if she wished upon the brightest star it would come true. She found that star and wished that Vigo was unharmed. She walked into the empty apartment alone and for the first time in a long while she felt helpless. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I actually don't like the title of this chapter. I'm trying to keep the chapter titles similar to the ones in the show, so like "The [one word to summarize the chapter]." I couldn't think of anything clever for this chapter though. If you have any ideas for a better chapter name, feel free to shoot them at me! As well as any other questions or comments you may have! Thanks for reading!


	6. The Smuggler

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sloane is surrounded! The weapon smith Vigo was kidnapped by the Coronet Bloodless in the night. After narrowly escaping the police, Sloane finds an uneasy ally with the mysterious Mandalorian as she learns that he is after the leaders of the Bloodless. They go their separate ways when the night is over, as Sloane struggles to find safety in the hostile city and the Mandalorian struggles to find his bounties.

Sloane couldn't sleep. She tried to relax, but every time she had a moment of peace she would hear a noise or see a shadow and jump out of her skin. The Bloodless had kidnapped Vigo only a block away from the apartment. Did they know where his apartment was? If they knew where he worked it wouldn't be surprising if they knew where he lived. If they were staking out his work then they would have seen him walking home only a block away. Did they know Sloane was in his apartment? Were they going to come for her too? Sloane kept her blaster by her side and stared at the door the entire night. She couldn't sleep, not with the possibility she could be kidnapped at any second, so she gave up and showered instead. The night wasn't over yet and Sloane was still awake and jittery with fear and caf. She thought the caf would make her feel more awake and alert but it only seemed to make her more agitated. She was wearing Vigo's clothes, which were a bit over sized but otherwise fit her surprisingly well. 

  
_He'll understand_ , Sloane thought to herself as she cuffed the pants so she wouldn't trip over the legs. _I can't stay in my clothes all week. It will only make it easier for the Bloodless to identify me. Vigo will understand._ Sloane didn't have enough time to worry if Vigo would be upset if she borrowed his clothes however because the holoprojector in the hall beeped with a call. Sloane nearly choked on her caf as she scrambled to answer before it stopped ringing. Sloane sighed in relief at the scruffy face of Ronan Occasey, the man she managed to contact earlier to let the others know she was trapped in Coronet City.

  
"Why the sad face? I thought you'd be happy to see me, Slo." He said with smirk.

  
Sloane sighed and collapsed against the wall opposite the projector. "You have no idea what I just went through." She then proceeded to explain the situation: the shoot out with the Bloodless over the cargo, the bounty they put on her head, and finally Vigo's kidnapping. She didn't feel the need to tell him about the Mandalorian, however. She was so worried about the Bloodless she just pushed the bastard to the back of her head and tried to stay focused.

  
"They took Vigo?" Ronan said with visible worry. He rubbed his stubbled jaw and looked off in the distance in thought. "The Bloodless knows Vigo knows something. That's the only reason why they would take him." 

  
"Do you think the Bloodless know about me? I'm still in his apartment. What if they know where he lives? Where _I_ am?" Sloane said suddenly filled with panic. "I need to get out of here, Ronan. Out of the apartment, out of the area, out of the city!"

  
"Well, hold on now. Settle down there, Slo. You're getting ahead of yourself." Ronan said holding out his hands. Sloane recognized the gesture. Whenever she got too worked up, Ronan would put his hands on her shoulders and hold her still so he could look Sloane in the eyes and calm her down. Oddly enough, just the sight of the gesture eased Sloane's nerves a little and she took a deep breath. Ronan smiled and continued. "Well, if they did take him to find out where you were, and they knew where he lived, wouldn't they have just gone to his place? They would already be there by now if they knew where he lived." What Ronan said made sense, but it still didn't do much to put Sloane at ease.

  
Sloane sighed and pulled her fingers through her hair. It was greasy on account of Vigo not needing shampoo since he was covered in scales. "I need to get off the planet, Ronan. The Bloodless are after me! I can't risk staying here any longer."

  
"I know, I know." Ronan said. "I managed to get in contact with Reba but she said they wouldn't have any ships available 'til the end of the week. You're stuck there unless you can find your own way out." Sloane sighed and banged her head on the wall. Ronan grimaced. He had known Sloane since childhood, they've been on countless missions together, and he has never seen her this panicked over anything. Ronan crossed his arms and tapped his fingers on his bicep as he tried to think of something to say. "Is there anywhere else you could possibly go for now? Anyone else who might be able to help you?" He finally asked. Sloane didn't respond, and Ronan wasn't even sure if she had heard him, but then she slowly rose up from the wall. Ronan watched as her eyes darted around in thought. 

  
"Wait, maybe..." Sloane started, and then frowned and drifted off. 

  
"What? What are you thinking?" Ronan said.

  
"It won't work. He won't do it." Sloane said waving her hand dismissively. 

  
"What won't work? Who won't do it?" Ronan asked excitedly. Sloane was scheming, which he knew from experience wasn't always a good thing, but at least she wasn't freaking out anymore. 

  
"No, nothing!" Sloane said, and then sighed in disgust. She looked at Ronan who was looking back at her in interest. Sloane sighed again. "I know of a bounty hunter..." She began, and Ronan slowly nodded his head in rapt attention. "Who is hunting after the Holderons."

  
"A bounty hunter, eh? I'm sure loads of bounty hunters have tried their hands at them two. This guy probably won't do you any good." Ronan said rolling his eyes.

  
"No, I think this one has a chance." Sloane said scratching the back of her neck. 

  
"What makes you say that?"

  
"Well, he's a..." Sloane started, but she didn't even want to finish. She knew as soon as she finished her sentence Ronan will lose his mind. "He's a _Mandalorian_." 

  
"Holy shit!" Ronan jumped. "You have to get him! He can help you! Come on, Sloane, what were you thinking?" Sirius used to tell Ronan and Sloane stories when they were little. He'd tell them legends and fables from across the galaxy of warriors and bounty hunters and countless escapades. It was through these stories that Ronan grew a deep respect and fascination for the Mandalorians. He dreamed of meeting one in person and seeing them in action, which is exactly why Sloane didn't want to tell Ronan that the bounty hunter was a Mandalorian. "Sloane, go find him! You have to get him to help you."

  
"I can't! He doesn't like me." Sloane said. She was glad the holoprojector wasn't really good quality. The blue projection would hide her blush.

  
"Well, why not? How do you know that?" Ronan asked. Sloane quickly looked away, and he didn't need to see her blush to know she was ashamed. "Oh god, what did you do?"

  
"Why does everyone always assume _I_ did something wrong!" Sloane said throwing her hands in the air.

  
"Because you _always_ do something wrong! Now talk!" Ronan snapped. 

  
Sloane mumbled something Ronan couldn't hear.

  
"Uh, what was that?" Ronan asked.

  
Sloane mumbled it again, slightly louder but still incoherent.

  
"C'mon, Sloane, you gotta speak up. Just say it."

  
Sloane sighed in defeat. "I got in a fight with him." she finally said. She couldn't even look him in the eye as she said it. 

  
"Oh, ho, ho," Ronan said as he leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms behind his head. "I've got to hear this."

By the time Sloane had finished talking to Ronan the sun had finally come up. As amused as he was by the story of Sloane's poor chemistry with the Mandalorian, they both agreed that he probably wouldn't be very willing to help. Ronan advised Sloane to just stay put for the moment in Vigo's apartment since wandering the city would leave her more vulnerable to being caught by the Bloodless. Sloane sighed in defeat and threw herself back on the couch to do some more painful waiting when the front door suddenly burst opened. She shrieked and threw herself off the couch and onto the floor as she thought it was the Bloodless finally coming for her, but it was the police. They wanted to search Vigo's apartment as part of the investigation of his disappearance and the break in at his shop, and were surprised to see Sloane there since Vigo lived alone. Vigo's sister, Reya, was with the police and recognized Sloane right away. Sloane told the police all that she could about Vigo: he used to be Bloodless, he left the gang and started working for her mother's "courier service", she was staying with Vigo for a "business trip" for the rest of the week, and she "fell asleep early" and "hadn't noticed Vigo didn't come home." Reya wrung her hands in worry as Sloane tried her best to tell a convinicing cover story. Reya wasn't a member of the Wandering Eye herself, but she knew of Vigo's involvement. The police were satisfied by Sloane's story and left the two woman alone in the apartment.

  
"The Bloodless don't take kindly to deserters." The police detective said. "If what you say is true, then I have no doubt that the Bloodless kidnapped him to finish up loose ends. Have a nice day, ladies. We'll let you know if there are any developments in the case." Reya whimpered and Sloane glared at the detective as he left with his partner. Finish up loose ends? How could he be so blunt? 

  
"Don't worry, Reya," Sloane said wrapping her arm around Reya's shoulders and offering her a handkerchief. "Vigo will be fine." 

  
"Please, Sloane." Reya said taking Sloane's hands in hers and looking up at her with overflowing eyes. "You have to do whatever you can to help Vigo! You're his only hope." 

  
Sloane stared back into Reya's eyes. They were the same as Vigo's, round, dark, and speckled with white like stars in a galaxy. Sloane's throat tightened and her eyes stung with tears as she gazed into Reya's frightened eyes. "I will." Sloane whispered. She blinked the tears away and spoke again in a firmer, confident tone. "I will save Vigo. I'll bring him back to you, don't worry."

* * *

The Mandalorian wasn't making any progress. He was on his fourth day of this mission, and normally he would be on his way back to the Guild to retrieve his reward, but he barely had a general idea of where his bounties could possibly be. His patience ran thin, and the only thing that kept him from giving up was the large bounty on their heads, and the thought that they couldn't hide forever. With the weapon smith out of the picture, the Mandalorian was back to square one. Despite the fact that the smuggler supposedly had the same information as the weapon smith, the Mandalorian wanted nothing more to do with her. He helped her escape from the Bloodless the night of the shoot out, and she helped him get away from the police. They were even now and he was more than happy to wash his hands of that insufferable little smuggler and her smart mouth. 

  
The Mandalorian stopped at the corner that he and the smuggler parted ways the night before. The sun had started to set and it still rained. It had rained ever since he landed in Coronet City and the Mandalorian wondered if it ever stopped. The Mandalorian looked down the street towards the shop and saw a police car outside. It seemed the police investigation was still ongoing. The Mandalorian wondered if maybe he should approach the police and give them what little information he could that wouldn't incriminate him when something bumped him from behind. He instinctively drew his pistol and spun around to confront whoever it was. 

  
The woman shrieked and jumped back, causing some of the fruit in her basket to topple out. She was a small Rodian female, with teal skin and deep blue eyes. She trembled and stared at the Mandalorian's blaster. "Please sir, I'm so sorry! I didn't mean you any harm!" she said, nearly sobbing. The Mandalorian quickly put his pistol away and started to pick up the fallen fruit. 

  
"No, no, please!" he said as he put the fruit back in the basket. "My mistake. I shouldn't be standing here." He held the basket steady as the Rodian began to outright cry. She was so upset she could barely hold the basket, and the Mandalorian felt guilty as he realized how much he had scared her.

  
"I'm sorry," she blubbered. She tried to wipe her tears with her shoulder, so the Mandalorian gently took the basket from her. She pulled out a handkerchief and wiped her face. The Mandalorian felt so awkward. He wasn't sure what to do so he started to look around to make sure no one was watching them. "I'm so sorry, I shouldn't burden you with myself." She continued. She took a deep breath and took the basket back. "I'm sorry I startled you-" the woman said, and then gasped when she looked back up at the Mandalorian. He took a step back. Was she going to cry again? Or was she going to scream?

  
"You're the Mandalorian!" she said instead. The woman dropped the basket and gripped the Mandalorian's arms instead. He tried to pull away but she had a surprisingly strong grip. "You're the one hunting the Bloodless! Please, please, you must help me!" She said so loudly the Mandalorian looked down the street to see if the police had overheard.

  
"Not so loud!" The Mandalorian snapped as he finally pulled his arms away. The woman gasped and covered her mouth, also looking around the streets. The streets thankfully always seemed to be empty in this part of town. The Mandalorian sighed in frustration and took another step back. "I'm sorry. I can't help you." He said firmly. 

  
"Oh, but please you must! My brother is in danger, you must help him." the woman begged, thankfully quieter this time. 

  
"I already have a job. I can't help you." The Mandalorian turned away and started to walk towards the dock, but then the woman grabbed his arm again and yanked him back.

  
"The Bloodless have my brother, Vigo! You must save him. Please, help him!" the woman begged as tears began to well in her eyes again. 

  
"Vigo?" the Mandalorian said, taken aback. "The weapon smith?"

  
"Yes, yes!" the woman cried in excitement, and the Mandalorian mimed putting a finger over his mouth to remind her to stay quiet. She put her hands over her mouth again and nodded quickly to show she understood. "Vigo has been kidnapped. You're already hunting the Bloodless, surely there is something you can do to help." The woman said. She clasped her hands together and looked up at the Mandalorian with desperate eyes. 

  
The Mandalorian huffed and looked around the streets again. He then grabbed the woman by the arm and pulled her into an alley out of sight of the police. Once there, he turned the woman to face him and grabbed her by the shoulders. "How do you know I'm hunting the Bloodless?" he said quietly. With such a high profile target, secrecy was the Mandalorian's only ally in this mission. If word was getting around that he was hunting the Bloodless, then he might have to abandon the mission entirely to avoid the Bloodless hunting after him.

  
"Sloane told me told me a Mandalorian was hunting the Bloodless, and you're the only Mandalorian here!" the woman said in a chipper voice. She bounced up and down with excitement, a complete shift in demeanor from the sobbing and blubbering. 

  
The Mandalorian was confused. "Sloane? Who's Sl-" he started, and then cut himself off as two horrible pieces clicked together. " _The smuggler?_ "

  
"Yes, yes! You met her at the docks!" the woman said excitedly, thankfully able to keep her voice down this time. The Mandalorian wondered how much of the story the smuggler had told her.

  
He threw his head back and sighed in exasperation. "Of course you know her," the Mandalorian said, mostly to himself. If weren't for his helmet he would have started to rip his hair out. "Listen, I can't-"

  
"She can help you!" the woman cut him off. "Sloane knows where their base is. She can take you there!" Once again, this woman caught the Mandalorian off guard. 

"She _knows?_ " The Mandalorian asked increduously.

"Yes, she knows the exact location! She can take you there, and then you can save Vigo!" the woman said, getting more and more excited. "Please, say that you will! Please help save Vigo!"

  
The Mandalorian didn't know what to say. Or rather, he did know, he just really didn't want to. He wanted nothing more to do with that smuggler, but if what this woman said was true and the smuggler really did know where the Bloodless base was, then did the Mandalorian really have a choice? It certainly didn't seem like he could figure it out on his own anytime soon. The Mandalorian sighed and clenched his fists. "Only if she can prove she knows where the base is." 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is called "The Smuggler" because it's about Sloane and her impact on the story. So far, this story has been about how events in the story impact Sloane, but now we see how she impacts the overall story. I also want to make it clear that the reason why Reya got hysterical when she bumped into Mando wasn't only because she was scared because he pulled his blaster on her, but because she was still emotionally fragile from Vigo being kidnapped. I don't think that was clear in the chapter though. I hope you guys have enjoyed what you've read so far! Don't be afraid to ask questions! I'll always be here to answer them!


	7. The Truce

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Mandalorian folds. Against his better judgement, he agrees to open dialogue with the clever smuggler, Sloane Savotta, in an attempt to make a plan to save the weapon smith, Vigo, who was kidnapped before he was able to give the Mandalorian valuable information to aid him in his quest to capture the leaders of the Coronet Bloodless. Well his sympathy for the weapon smith's fragile sister outweigh his contempt for the troublesome smuggler? Or will he forgo the help to keep his pride?

Reya busied herself making tea in the kitchen as Sloane and the Mandalorian silently glared at each other from across the table. She hummed happily and as she returned to the table and set down cups for each of them. She poured tea for Sloane, and was about to pour some for the Mandalorian but he held out his hand. 

  
"No thank you," he said. 

  
"No, please, I insist." Reya said, tipping the pot to pour him some tea. The Mandalorian covered his cup with his hand to stop her.

  
"It's fine. You don't need to serve me. I can't drink it," the Mandalorian said. 

  
"Why not?" Sloane sneered, and the Mandalorian and Reya turned towards her. "Just drink it, it's rude not to."

" I can't take off my helmet. It's a part of the Creed. A living being can never be allowed to see my face." he said. 

  
"Never?" Reya said in amazement.

  
"That is the way." the Mandalorian said simply. Sloane rolled her eyes, but Reya smiled and patted his hand.

  
"It's okay, I understand." Reya said, pouring herself tea instead. She sat down and turned her attention back to Sloane. "Sloane, tell him where the Bloodless base is."

  
Sloane took a deep breath and leaned her arms on the table. "Their base is in an abandoned warehouse in the old ship building district. Paxton is a controlling man and wanted to keep all of his operations in one place where he could oversee all of it at once. He pays off someone in the government to not poke around there so he can operate without being bothered."

  
"I figured he was in the ship building district, but how can you trust he's still in the same building?" The Mandalorian asked.

  
"Because Paxton is a creature of habit and hates change." Sloane said as she took a sip of tea. "Besides, his operations are so big by now it would be impossible for him to move without exposing his headquarters. He likes his set up, and the only thing that will get him to move would be if he was forced to."

  
"Does he ever leave the base?" The Mandalorian asked. The entire time he sat in the same position with one arm on the table and his body turned to the side as if he was prepared to stand up at any moment. 

  
"Not that I've ever seen," Sloane said. "He prefers to stay there, even made himself a nice little apartment there for him and Pax."

  
"But Pax does leave the base. He was there at the shoot out." the Mandalorian said as he remembered how he followed Pax all the way to the dock on the outskirts of the city.

  
"Oh yeah, Pax is the lead enforcer." Sloane took another sip of tea. When she finished she held the cup by her chin and gently swirled the tea inside. "He loves doing the dirty work. He was literally raised to be a killer."

  
"How often does he go out?"

  
"When I knew him, all the time. Pax wasn't the lead enforcer back then, though. Now that he his, his dad might keep him around more. You know, to be his little bodyguard." Sloane said.

  
The Mandalorian leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms. With his helmet on, Sloane couldn't tell where his eyes were looking, but it seemed like he was staring right at her. She hated not being able to read his facial expressions. Reba had taught Sloane how to read faces to help her better understand the people she encountered, which is what made her such a good negotiator. Sloane could talk her way out of almost any situation, so long as she could read the person's face, read their emotions, and then use that information to decide the best way to diffuse the situation. With this Mandalorian however, it all felt like a guessing game whenever he went silent, and it drove Sloane insane. She hated that she couldn't predict what the Mandalorian was going to do or read what he was thinking. The uncertainty made Sloane anxious, and her anxiety made her defensive.

  
"Is something wrong?" Reya asked the Mandalorian. He had been silent for a while.

  
The Mandalorian slowly shook his head. "I just don't know how I'm going to get at them."

  
"Well, what are your plans?" Sloane asked. "Other than shooting me down and handing me over to the Bloodless, that is." All of her anxiety and frustration with the Mandalorian built up and she snapped. In the back of her head, Sloane knew it wasn't smart to say but the mere presence of this man triggered all of her flight or fight instincts, and Sloane was not afraid to start a fight.

  
"I wasn't going to hurt you." the Mandalorian said through what sounded like gritted teeth. 

  
"Oh, yeah _suuure_ ," Sloane said rolling her eyes. "That's why you started shooting at me."

  
The Mandalorian pounded one fist on the table, which made Reya jump. He was so focused on Sloane however he didn't even notice. "You struck first." He growled. "If you had just come quietly I just would have cuffed you, but you went and made it difficult." 

  
"Oh, _I_ made it difficult? Well maybe if you hadn't pointed a blaster in my face I wouldn't have attacked you!" Sloane said sitting up straight in her seat and snarling at him from across the table. "Maybe if you stopped talking with your blaster you'd have better conversations with peo-"

  
"Well maybe you-" the Mandalorian snapped as he jumped up from his seat and pointed across the table at Sloane, and then cut himself off when Reya yelped in fear. She was curled up in her chair and held her arm in front of her face defensively. Her lip trembled as she watched him with frightened eyes. The Mandalorian clenched his fist and gritted his teeth. As much as he wanted to go off on the smuggler, he still felt bad for how he scared the woman earlier, scared Reya, as she giddily introduced herself, and didn't want to scare her anymore. The Mandalorian took a deep breath and lowered his hand. "I should go." He said as he picked up the rifle he leaned against the wall and slung it onto his back. 

  
"W-wait!" Reya said as she uncurled and reached out for the Mandalorian across the table. "Wait, what about Vigo?" 

  
"I'm sorry, I just can't work with her." the Mandalorian said glaring at Sloane. She got to her feet shortly after the Mandalorian did and had one hand on the table and the other clenched at her side. "I'll save Vigo if I can, but I'll have to find the Bloodless myself first." 

  
"But what if it's too late?" Reya said as tears began to well. "What if you can't find him in time?" 

  
The Mandalorian tried to say something, but Sloane spoke first. "You won't find them. The Bloodless base is too well hidden. You wouldn't even know what to look for."

  
"You told me it was in an abandoned warehouse. I'll search every one of them if I have to." the Mandalorian said. He started for the door. 

  
"Wait!" Sloane said as she followed him into living area. When Sloane said it, she honestly didn't expect him to have a reaction. When he stopped and looked at her from over his shoulder, his steely gaze caught her off guard and she hesitated before asking, "What was your plan for turning me in?" 

  
"What?" The Mandalorian asked and turned to face her. 

  
"Your plan," Sloane said, suddenly anxious again. The Mandalorian was clearly annoyed with her. Would he even listen to her? Was it too late to try and convince him to help? "How were you going to turn me in to the Bloodless?"

  
The Mandalorian contemplated her for a second, and then pulled out a pair of handcuffs from his belt. "I was going to put you in some cuffs, and then drag you around until I caught the eye of the Bloodless. Paxton sent out a message saying whoever turned you in alive would be rewarded in person, and that was just the opportunity I needed."

  
Sloane swallowed hard. "And then what? Grab him and go? Leave me behind?" She crossed her arms to try and look confident, but really she just wanted to hide that her hands were shaking. She watched as the Mandalorian contemplated her for a moment longer.

  
"Not if I don't have to," he finally said, opening the cuffs. 

  
Sloane looked back at Reya and her eyes that matched her brother's. They were filled with hope and rimmed with tears. Sloane sighed and looked back at the Mandalorian. "Your plan better work," she said. Sloane walked back to the table and the Mandalorian followed her. She stood behind her chair, but instead of sitting down she just gripped the top of it.

  
"It will." the Mandalorian said. He came up beside her and threw his cuffs on the table in front of the smuggler. He crossed his arms and looked down at her. She stared back up at him with eyes filled with determination and a jaw he knew she clenched to fight back something smart to say. "I'll turn you in to the Bloodless, bring you to Paxton, and then create a distraction on my way out. You'll find Vigo and escape, and I'll deal with the Holderons."

  
"You can't take both of them on at the same time. Just because Paxton doesn't go out anymore that doesn't mean he let himself go. He trains everyday and he trained Pax specifically so that they could fight together. It'll be two against one." Sloane said as she crossed her arms as well.

  
"I like those odds." the Mandalorian said in an almost playful tone. Sloane smirked at him.

  
"You couldn't even take me on, what makes you think you can take the both of them." she said.

  
The Mandalorian took in a sharp breath and pointed at her face, with his hand rather than his blaster this time. He struggled for words, and then said "You'll take Paxton then." 

  
Sloane was taken aback, "What, why me?" she said. Sloane still remembered the time she watched Paxton execute a policemen who had found the base. He called everyone down to watch as he ruthlessly cut him apart with vibroknives. He had given the policemen vibroknives too, as a challenge, but he didn't stand a chance against Paxton. Sloane was still young at the time, so Reba pulled her away when Paxton had begun to disembowel to the policemen. Sloane could still remember his horrible scream, and she's been terrified of Paxton ever since. The thought of fighting against him was the biggest fear she didn't even know she had until the Mandalorian suggested it. 

  
"He's older, and you're obviously good in hand-to-hand combat, so it shouldn't be a problem right?" the Mandalorian said, now definitely with a playful tone. 

  
"Uhhhhh..." Sloane said as she blanked on what to say. How could she possibly explain to the Mandalorian why she didn't want to fight Paxton without divulging her childhood trauma?

  
"Good," the Mandalorian said, glad he finally seemed to have the upper hand on this girl. "You'll take Paxton, I'll handle Pax, and on the way out we'll save Vigo. Agreed?" he held out his hand, and Sloane stared at it in shock. It was the first non-threatening gesture he had ever made towards her, and she was _not_ expecting it. Sloane slowly took his hand, and shook it once but firmly. 

  
"Agreed." She said as her smirk returned to her face. Reya jumped up and shrieked in delight. She wrapped her arms around Sloane's neck and showered her with thanks and kisses. She then turned and squeezed the Mandalorian around middle, and he was so startled by her sudden affection he threw his arms up and kept them there as if Reya had held him at gun point instead. Sloane laughed at the sight of the Mandalorian awkwardly patting Reya's shoulders as if he didn't know how to give a hug and sat back down in her chair. She watched as Reya showered the confused Mandalorian with thanks and affection and finished her tea. She stared at the cuffs on the table and rubbed her wrists as a memory of pain made them ache.

  
_What did I just sign myself up for?_ Sloane thought to herself as the dread of what was about to happen settled in.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heh, Sloane was being a bit feisty in this chapter. I promise she won't always be so snippy towards Mando, she just doesn't trust him yet. Nor does Mando fully trust Sloane, which is fair on both sides because they didn't meet under the best circumstances. Anyway, thanks for reading! Don't be afraid to ask any questions or leave any comments!


	8. The Reason

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Mandalorian and Sloane form and uneasy truce. They agree to work together in order to infiltrate the Coronet Bloodless base to save Sloane's friend Vigo and to retrieve the Mandalorian's bounties. Still unsure if they can trust each other, Sloane and the Mandalorian agree to meet at dock ten to make further plans of their attack. Can they settle their differences and work together, or will old wounds reopen between them?

_I'm doing this for Vigo_ , Sloane had to remind herself. It was the early morning, and while it the rain had stopped for once, the sky was still dark and gloomy. Even the sun seemed to shine an ambismal gray instead of a warm yellow. She had stayed the night at Reya's apartment, which was a bit farther from dock ten, but Sloane didn't think it was safe to stay in Vigo's apartment any longer. Sloane knew Vigo was strong, and wouldn't bend to interrogation, but it still wasn't safe to sit in one place for too long while the Bloodless were still on the hunt for her. Reya drove Sloane to dock ten in the morning, and Sloane anxiously tapped her foot the entire way there. 

  
"Thank you for doing this," Reya told Sloane as she pulled up a block away from the dock. She took Sloane's hands in hers and gave her a warm smile. "You do so much for our family. All of you at the Wandering Eye."

  
Sloane smiled back. As dower as she felt, Reya's gentle kindness was infectious. "It's what we do. We help those who the Empire turns a blind eye to." Sloane squeezed Reya's hands, and then heaved a sighed and got out of the speeder. She leaned back down to give Reya some final words, "Stay home. Don't go back to Vigo's place until we come back. We should be back by tomorrow, and when we do we'll give you a call at Vigo's apartment. If we don't contact you by the next morning..." Sloane drifted off. She wasn't sure what to tell Reya. Of course she wanted to stay confident and tell Reya that everything was going to be fine and they'll be back safe and sound, but Sloane learned in several hard ways just how badly plans could go. "Just wait until we contact you before you leave the house." Sloane said. 

  
Reya nodded firmly. She pursed her lips and furrowed her eyes, literally trying to put on a brave face. Sloane smiled, and then reached through the window to give Reya's hand one last squeeze. "May the light guide you," Reya said, and then she pulled away. Sloane watched the speeder glide away, and then put her hands in her pockets. It was cold with a bitter wind. Sloane had borrowed one of Vigo's jackets, but she couldn't find any gloves that fit her human hands. Sloane took one last deep breath before she marched off towards the dock. 

  
The dock was packed with ships. Some of the nicer docks had invidual bays where pilots could land their craft in a secure location, but dock ten was in a poorer part of town so the dock was just an open slab of pavement where ships can land and pay hourly. Not very secure, although the docks in Coronet City had a reputation of having some rather serious security. Sloane nodded and smiled at the guard by the entrance of the dock, who merely sneered at her as she walked in. Sloane found the Mandalorian's ship easily: it was just as old and ugly as she remembered it being. It had yellow paint that didn't do much to add aesthetic appeal. It looked like a narrow box with engines placed so far back Sloane imagined the ship tipping forward a bit when if flew. The Mandalorian leaned against doorway of the bay door on the side of his ship with his arms crossed. Sloane swallowed hard when she saw him. Maybe it was the adrenaline that always pumped through her veins whenever they met, but she had never noticed just how brawn he was. When he had told her he planned to drag her around in handcuffs, Sloane thought he meant that figuratively. As she saw him now, she realized he literally could have.

  
"You're here earlier than I expected." the Mandalorian said, not changing his position as Sloane approached.

  
"I got a ride," Sloane said with a shrug. She stopped at the base of ramp and looked up at the Mandalorian. Surely it was just the elevation that made him look taller than she remembered, too. "We still have a lot to discuss, and a big day ahead of us. We need all the time we can get."

  
"Then we better get started." the Mandalorian said. He turned and walked inside the ship, and Sloane hesitated. She looked around the dock. No one was outside. No one was there to see her board the ship, or to report her to the Bloodless, or to help her if the Mandalorian attacked her... No one was on the dock. Sloane took a deep breath and walked up the ramp. 

  
"Whoa..." Sloane said under her breath as she looked around the ship. It was somehow junkier on the inside. This ship has clearly seen some better days, and those days were probably not with the Mandalorian. The door closed behind Sloane and she jumped. No backing out now, she thought to herself. The Mandalorian walked to the back of the ship, and Sloane quietly followed. This Mandalorian was a man a few words, which made Sloane nervous. She couldn't read his face, he never said what he was thinking, and she didn't even know his name. Wait, did he even know her name? She never exactly properly introduced herself. Sloane leaned against the archway and watched the Mandalorian. He walked over to a ladder and grabbed a rung, and then slowly turned towards her as he realized he was being watched. 

  
"Yes?" He said after a moment of awkward silence.

  
"Is your name Mando?" Sloane asked.

  
"What?" the Mandalorian said, caught off guard. 

  
"The other day when we were running from the police, those two guys outside the bar called you Mando. Is that your name?"

  
"No." the Mandalorian said firmly.

  
"Then what is your name?" Sloane asked. The Mandalorian hesitated so she stepped towards him and held out her hand. "I'm Sloane. What should I call you?" 

  
The Mandalorian stared at her hand for a bit. Just as Sloane was taken aback by his handshake last night, so was he now. He took it and said "Mando is fine."

  
"Oh," Sloane said. The Mandalorian climbed the ladder and Sloane pursed her lips. It wasn't the answer she was hoping for but... it was fine. Sloane was fine. This situation was _fine_. Nothing wrong at all with making plans with a stranger you've only ever met at gunpoint to raid a rival gang's base. Sloane sighed and climbed up the ladder after the Mandalorian. "I guess you usually work alone." she said, mostly to end the silence.

  
"I prefer it that way." He said. He walked down a narrow hall to the cockpit. It was small with three seats. 

  
"Then I guess you're not too excited about working together, huh?" Sloane said. The Mandalorian scoffed and Sloane smiled weakly. Well, at least she wasn't the only one who felt that way. "What do you know so far? About the Bloodless, I mean." Sloane stood by the door, unsure of what to do. 

  
The Mandalorian sat down in the pilot's seat and pulled out a handheld holoprojector and opened up a map of the city. He zoomed in on the abandoned ship building district and circled a wide area. "I know their base is somewhere around here," he said. "The natives don't really like to talk about them. Whatever Bloodless I try to follow I usually lose somewhere in the warehouses."

  
Sloane was impressed. He actually had the right area of where the base was. Sloane reached out and zoomed in on the far corner of the warehouse district and highlighted a a warehouse that was smaller than the others. "This one is their base," Sloane said," but, if you tried to enter the building, it's empty." She then highlighted a smaller building next to it. "This building is how you get in."

  
"But how?" The Mandalorian said, rubbing what would have been his jaw if it weren't for the helmet. 

  
"This building has underground levels," Sloane said as she pointed at the first building again, and then to the smaller building "and a tunnel system that links to the building next to it. Paxton sealed off all the elevators and stairways in the main building, and you can only get in and out through the tunnel system." Sloane sat down in a seat and looked at the Mandalorian. "If you were to walk into the main building, you wouldn't even guess there were underground levels. That's how he stays hidden."

  
The Mandalorian tipped his head to the side and leaned back in his chair. "Clever," he said in admiration. "I've never seen anything like it from common gangsters."

  
"Paxton used to be a politician on some other planet, which is how he got to be so sneaky. He was forced out because he was just as crooked there, and came here to Coronet City where he started business as a crime lord." Sloane said. "He's a pretty smart guy, actually. Still a politician at heart though. He likes waltzing around in suits and giving speeches and..." Sloane drifted off. She slowly straightened in her seat and her eyes darted around in thought. "Throwing parties," Sloane finally said under her breath.

  
"Parties?" the Mandalorian asked, slightly amused by the frivolity of it. 

  
"Yeah, yeah. Hey, what day is it?"

  
"Why?" the Mandalorian asked as he poked around the interface of the holoprojector to look for a date.   
"'Cause he like's parties," Sloane said. The Mandalorian gave her a confused look, and then finally told her the date. Sloane smirked and rubbed her chin. "Well, aren't we in luck." 

  
"Why's that?" the Mandalorian asked, still very confused. He leaned towards Sloane and rested his elbows on his knees. 

  
"Paxton loves to throw himself a big birthday party every year. He invites every single member of the Bloodless, closes down every operation they have going, and gathers them all at the base just so he can have a big night to celebrate himself, and it's _tomorrow_."

  
The Mandalorian tilted his head in interest. "Really?"

  
Sloane nodded. "He does this thing where he gives a big speech to everyone. Before he gives it, he locks himself in his office for like, an hour or even more. Just him, alone in his office. He sends he guards away and just isolates himself from the party so that he can prepare himself for the speech." Sloane crossed her arms and leaned back in her chair. "Sure does sound like a good time to grab him doesn't it?" 

  
"Sounds like the perfect time." the Mandalorian said, and Sloane could hear the smile in his voice. She smiled at him and all she could do was hope he was still smiling back. "What about the rest of the Bloodless though?"

  
Sloane rubbed her jaw. "If we cut the power, they'll be locked in the main room. No one will be able to get to him," Sloane took a deep breath. "But as soon as they get the power back on, they'll just come after us."

  
"For how long?" the Mandalorian asked, the smile gone.

  
Sloane sighed. "I don't know. Paxton has a chain of command, and his minions are devoted. We'll have bounties on our heads for the rest of our lives." She rested her elbow on the arm rest and her chin in her hand. She could barely stand having a bounty on her head for a few days, but having one for the rest of her life?

  
The Mandalorian sat quietly for a moment, his arms crossed in thought. "What if we cut off the chain of command?"

  
Sloane looked up at him suspiciously. "What do you mean?"

  
"You said all of the Bloodless go to the party, right?" the Mandalorian said.

  
"Um, yeah..." Sloane said. 

  
"And all of them would be trapped together if we cut the power." 

  
"Hold on," Sloane said shaking her head. "Where are you going with this?"

  
"You said it yourself," the Mandalorian said as he leaned forward again. "We'll be doing the galaxy a favor."

  
"I get the feeling you might be taking my words out of context." Sloane said as she pointed a finger at the Mandalorian. "You only need two men. Let's leave the death count at that." 

  
"I'd prefer to bring them in alive."

  
"Even better." Sloane said and her legs. "We don't need to do... whatever it is you're thinking to bag two men." 

  
"The Bloodless will come after us." The Mandalorian said in an almost exasperated tone. 

  
"Not if-" Sloane started and then cut herself off when the Mandalorian pulled out a grenade from seemingly nowhere. Sloane bit her lip and stared at the grenade.

  
"I have more." he said waving it at her. 

  
"I have a better idea that won't get us busted for terrorism charges." Sloane said as she snatched the grenade out of his hand. The Mandalorian crossed his arms and shook his head the slightest bit. Sloane didn't need to see his face to guess he was probably rolling his eyes. "What if we just called in the Imps as soon as we head out. Let them take care of the rest of the Bloodless."

  
"You want to call the Imps for backup?" the Mandalorian said in disbelief. "You're a smuggler, I'm a Mandalorian. We'll be killed on sight."

  
"We have Eyes watching everywhere," Sloane said cryptically, which made the Mandalorian tilt his head in visible confusion. "I have contacts. The Imps won't even know we were involved."

  
"You have... _Imperial contacts_?" the Mandalorian said in a tone that clearly meant he didn't believe a word Sloane was saying.

  
Sloane waved the grenade at the Mandalorian. "So do you if you got your hands on this thermal detonator. The Empire regulates these just to keep them out the hands of petty bounty hunters like you. Unless you got it underground." Sloane teased. The Mandalorian snatched the grenade back.

  
"Are you sure this contact of yours is reliable?" the Mandalorian asked as he put the grenade away.

  
"He's been working with my crew for the past few years. I've trusted him with my life, before, and I'll trust him again and again." Sloane said.

  
The Mandalorian scoffed. "Maybe you're too trusting," he said. He leaned back in his seat.

  
Sloane pressed her lips together. She watched the Mandalorian from across the room and looked at the ground when he looked at her. "Do you trust me?" Sloane asked, her eyes still on the ground. 

  
The Mandalorian hesitated. "That depends," he said. Sloane looked up at him. The Mandalorian had noticed the blaster on her thigh as she approached him outside the ship, but from this angle, with Sloane turned to the side and her jacket gaped open a bit, he noticed she had another blaster in a holster hidden under her arm. He took a deep breath. "What are you doing this for?"

  
"Doing what?" Sloane asked.

  
"Helping me." The Mandalorian leaned forward in his seat and Sloane leaned away from him. "You said it wasn't just to get the bounty off your head. Then what for?"

  
"To save Vigo!" Sloane said, almost offended. "He's been my friend for years! I knew him since I was a child. He's never turned his back on me and has saved my ass countless times before. Now it's my turn to save his." 

  
The Mandalorian considered this. He thought back to the day he first saw her at the dock outside of the city. Sloane's crew was under heavy fire, the ship was taking some serious damage, and then it took off without her. Sloane said she told her crew to go, to leave her behind. "Just like how you saved your crew during the firefight?"

  
"Yes." Sloane said as if it was obvious. "What else am I supposed to do? Save myself and _not_ help others?" 

  
"You're going to get yourself killed helping others." the Mandalorian said in a reprimanding tone.

  
"Well if I don't help them, I might as well just kill them myself." Sloane stood up and walked to the doors, then spun around and faced the Mandalorian. "I don't know why you think it's okay to question _my_ morals! You're the one who's only in it for the bounties!"

  
The Mandalorian stood and crossed the room in four strides. "I have a lot of people counting on that money." he jabbed a finger into Sloane's chest. "A lot of people depend on me to do work and provide for them. The bounties I can get from the Holderons will buy a lot of-" the Mandalorian cut himself off. He clenched his fist and quickly turned away. 

  
"A lot of what?" Sloane asked. She pursed her lips and tried to look at the Mandalorian, but he turned away again. Sloane hesitated, but decided to ask anyway, "Do you... have a family?"

  
The Mandalorian took a deep breath. "Of sorts," he said quietly, "and they need medicine." 

  
Sloane bit her lip. Suddenly she felt bad for her accusation against the Mandalorian only wanting the money. "What kind of medicine?" she asked. The Mandalorian shook his head and went back to the pilot's seat. "Hey, I know where to get some. What kind do you need? How much of it?" 

  
He sighed. "It's not important."

  
"It is important if you're going through all this trouble to get them medicine." Sloane said. She stepped closer to the Mandalorian and turned the holoprojector off so she could see him. "Come on, just tell me. I can help." She said. 

  
The Mandalorian looked up at her. Sloane looked so concerned, and he couldn't figure out why. The Mandalorian never had much respect for smugglers. He thought they were selfish and greedy, at least all the ones he had ever met were. This girl, however, didn't seem to be that way at all. She ordered her crew to escape without her, she was willing to come face-to-face with the man who put a bounty on her just to save a friend, and now she wanted to help him get medicine for the Covert? Who was this smuggler that cared about others, and why did she care? "Why are you trying to help me?" The Mandalorian asked in frustrated confusion. He stood up and crossed the room to tower over Sloane and look down at her in an attempt to intimidate her. "What are you trying to gain from this?"

  
"Like I said," Sloane said as she shrunk under his glare. She took a step back from him. "What else am I supposed to do? My friends need help. Your family needs help. I just want to help in whatever way I can." 

  
"The Mandalorians are trained to take care of ourselves." he growled.

  
"And I was raised to help others." Sloane said as she straightened up and looked the Mandalorian in the eye, her confidence regained. "I was raised to help those in need who couldn't help themselves, and like it or not, you are one of those people. So do you want my help?"

  
The Mandalorian took a step back, and looked Sloane up and down. _Who is this kid?_ He thought to himself. _Who the hell raised her?_ "You're unbelievable." he said and shook his head. "I can't believe this. I...."

  
Sloane crossed her arms. She knew his type. The "lone wolf" type who were physically incapable of asking for help, even if they really needed it. She crossed her arms and shook her head, amused by his stubbornness. The Mandalorian struggled for words, but eventually just sighed and silently sat back down in the pilot's seat and looked up at her. "I'll take that as a 'yes.'" Sloane turned the holoprojector back on and sat down. She zoomed in on the two highlighted buildings, "Come on, let's get to work." she said. They spent the rest of the day planning their infiltration. Sloane told the Mandalorian everything she knew about the Bloodless. The Mandalorian gave her food rations and they didn't leave the ship. 

  
When night came, Sloane stepped outside through a hatch in the back ship for some air. It was still cold out, and the back of the ship provided a little bit of cover from the rain. Sloane tried to inhale a breath of fresh air, but instead she inhaled the good ol' fashioned Coronet City smog and exhaust fumes from the neighboring ships. She coughed and laughed a little. The Mandalorian stepped out and stood beside her. "Will you be going back to Vigo's apartment?" he asked. 

  
Sloane sighed. "I don't think that will be safe. Not with the Bloodless still hunting after me." she told him, and the Mandalorian nodded. 

  
"I think I have a sleeping bag. You can stay the night." he offered, and Sloane raised an eyebrow. 

  
"Hey, just 'cause you fed me doesn't mean I'll sleep with you. I'm not that kind of girl." She joked and the Mandalorian threw his head back and sighed in exasperation.

  
"Not like-"

  
"I'm joking!" Sloane laughed. She gently elbowed his side and shook her head. "I bet you sleep in that armor." 

  
"Sometimes," the Mandalorian said with a shrug. Over the course of the day the tension between the two had melted, and the Mandalorian had started to show the slightest bit of friendliness towards Sloane. At least enough to joke with her. Or, she thought he was joking. 

  
Sloane looked up at him. "I can't tell if you're being serious or not,"

  
"I can't take my armor off in front of others," the Mandalorian said as he crossed his arms. "That is the Way." 

  
"Huh," Sloane said. She looked up at the night sky and hoped to see stars but all she saw was clouds and rain. "Is it comfortable?"

  
"Not really," The Mandalorian said and rubbed the back of his neck. "Are you staying?" 

  
"I think I will, if you wouldn't mind." Sloane turned to face the Mandalorian and he nodded once. 

  
"I'll find that bag." he said, and walked back into the ship. Sloane nodded and turned back to the sky. She stepped out a bit further and raindrops gently hit her front. She had taken off the jacket since it had gotten surprisingly hot in the Mandalorian's ship and her shirt was getting wet. Well, Vigo's shirt was getting wet. Sloane held her hand above her face to block the rain from her eyes. She watched a cloud slowly pass and reveal the moon. There were a lot of moons in the galaxy. A lot of stars, and lot of skies. Ever since she was a child, Sloane liked to look up at the night sky and imagine all the adventures she would go on. All the planets she would visit, all the different skies she would see. Sloane took a deep breath and stared at the Corellian moon. She was born under this moon, spent her early childhood under the safety of this moon, and if she didn't play her cards right, she just might die under this moon. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think I made Sloane a low key Mary-Sue. Oops. I promise it's all with good reason that will make sense later. For now, just know that Sloane was raised by Reba, and Reba taught Sloane all of the values and morals that were instilled into her as a child. Reba formed the Wandering Eye with Sirius to serve a higher purpose than themselves, and they raised their children to carry on with that purpose (I think it's important to say Reba and Sirius are not a couple. Sirius has a very lovely wife who will be introduced later). As always, don't be afraid to ask any questions or leave comments! I'll respond as quickly as possible! Thanks for reading!


	9. The Bloodless

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A time for celebration! Sloane Savotta and the Mandalorian agree to work together in order to infiltrate the Coronet City Bloodless base. Paxton Holderon, the ruthless leader of the Bloodless, hosts a party for his birthday every year. Sloane and the Mandalorian devise a plan to use the party for cover as the carry out their plan of attack. The mission is dangerous, but both are willing to do whatever it takes to save their friend Vigo, and collect their bounties. Will the two be able to work together to complete the daring mission? Or will their own stubbornness and unpredictability get in the way?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CONTENT WARNING! This chapter deals a little with human trafficking and there are mentions sexual assault. Nothing goes into detail nor does any sexual assault actually occur (Sloane does get groped a little), but I knew it would be best to put the warning out there.  
> Also, this is a really long chapter, so get ready to buckle in!

The Bloodless have celebrated Paxton's birthday for so long they had a specific routine that was followed meticulously so that they could all gather at the base without suspicion. They dressed in their finest, as Paxton insisted on his party being a formal event, and would arrive at the base in small groups. It was evening and most of the Bloodless had arrived at the base. A guard waited inside the old little maintenance building that connected to the base. He heard the bass of the music pounding through the tunnels and sighed as he wished he was at the party instead of waiting for latecomers. Just as he was about to give up, he heard an engine outside the building. It was much to loud to be a speeder, and the Bloodless knew better than to arrive in one of those. The guard readied his blaster and slowly opened the door. A little ways off, an old gunship had landed between the rows of buildings. It was a ship the guard had never seen before, so he cautiously approached it with his blaster ready. He was about to call for the pilot to open up when a door opened on the side of the ship.

  
The guard's jaw dropped when he saw who was in the doorway. A Mandalorian and a woman stood in the doorway of the ship. The woman struggled and thrashed against the man as he held her firmly by the arm. "Let me go!" She shouted. The man obeyed by throwing her out of the ship. She hit the pavement face first as her hands were cuffed behind her back so she couldn't break the fall. By the time she had rolled over, the man was standing above her with his blaster out. 

  
"I've had enough of you." He said in a modulated voice. He looked up at the guard. "Is this the Bloodless base?" he asked.

  
"Yeah, man," the guard said, lowering his blaster. "How did you know-"

  
The Mandalorian pulled the woman to her feet and shoved her forward with the barrel of his blaster. "Your little friend told me." 

  
"Sloane," the guard said, crossing his arms. "It's good to see you." He said sarcastically.

  
"Yeah, fuck you too." Sloane said. She recognized the guard, and remembered how much she hated him. 

  
"This is the girl you're looking for, right?" The Mandalorian said, shoving her forward again.

  
"She sure is," the guard said and opened the door to the maintenance building. "I think you just brought the Boss his best birthday present ever." the guard laughed. "Follow me. I'll take you too him,"

  
"Move it," the Mandalorian snapped and shoved Sloane forward again. 

  
"Alright!" Sloane said as she followed the guard in front of her. She threw the Mandalorian a dirty look over her shoulder. Sloane knew the whole "bad cop" routine was a part of the plan, but the Mandalorian seemed to have a little too much fun with it. Her cheek stung from where it was scrapped when she was shoved out of the ship, and she could already feel a bruise begin to form on her back from where the Mandalorian kept jabbing her. 

  
The guard, Sloane, and the Mandalorian walked down the tunnel, and the bass grew louder and louder. Once they reached the other side and the guard had opened the door, Sloane and the Mandalorian flinched as they were hit with a wall of music. The main room had been turned into what was practically a club. "Keep close!" the Mandalorian could barely hear the guard shout. The Mandalorian grabbed Sloane by the cuffs so she wouldn't get lost in the crowd as they made their way around the perimeter of the room. The guard led them to set of double doors and they left the party, but could still hear the music. At the end of the long hall was an elevator. On either side were doors. The guard walked ahead and the Mandalorian pushed Sloane forward, more gentle this time. The guard kept walking, but looked over his shoulder to smirk at Sloane.

  
"You always been a pain in the ass, Sloane. How has someone not killed you yet." The guard asked with a sneer.

  
"I'm good at not getting caught." Sloane snarled back.

  
"Looks like you ain't so good anymore." the guard guffawed and winked at the Mandalorian as if he were in on the joke. "How'd you get her, Mando?"

  
"Found her sneaking around the my dock." the Mandalorian said. He still had his blaster pointed at Sloane but wasn't prodding her with it anymore. 

  
"The hell you doing there? Looking for work?" the guard said with a dirty smile. Sloane sneered at him.

  
"Yeah, and I saw you're wife there shagging you're brother for some quick credits." Sloane snapped. 

  
"You smart mouthed little bitch," the guard growled. He stopped and turned around to Sloane. He was almost twice her size. "I oughta teach you a-" the guard pulled his arm back to punch Sloane, but the Mandalorian grabbed her around the waist and yanked her away. He pointed his blaster in the guard's face.

  
"Hands off the bounty." the Mandalorian growled. The guard snarled at him and then at Sloane.

  
"I hope he kills you." the guard snapped at Sloane. "I hope he rips out your guts and uses them to hang you from the street lights." The guard turned back around before he could see the Mandalorian step back a bit as he was caught off guard by the vividness of the description, but Sloane pressed herself against the Mandalorian as memories of seeing dangling bodies around Coronet City flashed through her head. They continued down the hall and the Mandalorian held onto Sloane's shoulder as he pushed her forward. His blaster was pointed at the guards back the entire way to the elevator. The guard summoned the elevator and they all waited. Someone came out of the room right next to the elevator and seemed to be adjusting his pants as he brushed past them. Sloane and the Mandalorian looked into the room before the door closed. The walls on either side of the room were lined with cells -no, _cages_ \- with women locked inside. They were crammed together tightly in the cages and could barely move. A young Twi-lek girl probably no older than Arlo gripped the bars of a cage and reached through them when she saw Sloane and the Mandalorian in the doorway. She tried to cry out for help but the door shut before she could be heard.

  
The elevator doors opened, and the guard stepped to the side and waved the Mandalorian through. "Just go to the bottom floor. The Boss will be there." he said dryly. The Mandalorian pushed Sloane inside and the two descended down the elevator alone. 

  
"They're traffickers?" the Mandalorian asked. He let go of Sloane and but his blaster away. He had heard Sloane say that the Bloodless were a few times before but it started to settle in now what that meant.

  
"Yeah, they started it a few years ago, " She said and stretched her back the best she could with her hands cuffed behind her. "That's when my crew split with them. We don't work with traffickers."

  
"Who is your crew?" the Mandalorian asked. Sloane had kept mentioning a "crew" but he had no idea what exactly she meant by that. "Are you also a part of a gang?"

  
"Um, we're actually a _private courier service_." Sloane smirked at the Mandalorian.

  
"Right, right," he scoffed. "Smugglers." The elevator doors opened. There was a long empty hall that looked like it belonged in a fancy hotel rather than an abandoned warehouse. The floors were wooden and a strip of a lush, bloody red carpet ran down the hall. The walls were painted a warm cream color and were trimmed with gold. There were even chandeliers hanging from the ceiling. At the end of the hall were ornate double doors. The Mandalorian took a step forward into the hall, and Sloane took a step back against the wall of the elevator. The Mandalorian looked back at her in surprise.

  
"Just... give me a minute," Sloane said quietly. A cold sweat worked it's way down her back and she swallowed. She stared at the double doors that led to Paxton's office.

  
"We don't have a minute." The Mandalorian said. He reached out for her and Sloane flinched away from his hand. 

  
"Wait!" she said in a shaky voice as she backed into the furthest corner away from the Mandalorian. "Wait, wait, wait, what if-" 

  
The Mandalorian sighed. He held out his hand towards Sloane and held the elevator door open. "Just stick to the plan." he said. Sloane shook her head. 

  
"What if doesn't work?" Sloane asked in panic. Sloane had managed to stay relatively calm the entire day but all of her fear suddenly caught up with her. She didn't want to move a step outside of that elevator. "What if Paxton sees right through us? What if _you_ don't follow the plan and ditch me?" Sloane snapped, her fear once again made her hostile towards the Mandalorian.

  
"I'll come back for you, don't worry." the Mandalorian said. "I'm not going to leave you behind." He looked at the corners of the elevator and hall. Surprisingly, there didn't seem to be any cameras. Not any visible ones at least. 

  
"How do I know that?" Sloane snapped. "How can I trust you?"

  
The Mandalorian sighed. "Because I made a deal with you," he said. He stepped forward and put his hand on her shoulder. "And I don't break deals. Now come on," he pulled Sloane out of the elevator and she whimpered. He stepped in front of her and turned towards the door. "We have a job to do." He walked forward, and hesitated until he heard Sloane follow him. They walked down the hall together. The hall was wide and up ahead he could see dark gray slabs mounted on the walls. He paid no mind to them as he passed by as he thought it was just some art instillation. He stopped and turned around when he heard Sloane gasp behind him. 

  
"Vigo!" she was stopped in front of one of the gray slabs. The Mandalorian came up beside her and sure enough he was there. His face was frozen in a scream and his hands reached out. The Mandalorian swallowed and looked around the hall. 

  
"What is this?" he asked as he looked around at the other slabs of carbonite. "What are these things?"

  
"They're people who betrayed Paxton," Sloane said. Her eyes never left Vigo and her voice trembled. "He freezes them in carbonite and hangs them on the wall so they can never betray him again." A tear rolled down Sloane's cheek as she realized this would be her, hung right next to Vigo. She suddenly turned and ran down the hall and the Mandalorian lunged at her. He grabbed Sloane around the waisted and lifted her into the air where she kicked and struggled.

  
"Knock it off!" he snapped as he struggled to hold his grip. 

  
"Put me down!" Sloane wailed. "Put me down, I can't do this! I can't!" 

  
The double doors slammed open behind them. "What the hell is all this noise!" a deep voice barked.

  
The Mandalorian spun around, threw Sloane to the ground, and pulled out his blaster in one swift motion. Sloane tried to wriggle away so he stepped on her back. The man at the door was in a perfectly tailored black suit. His had a chiseled face with a thin beard that wrapped around his jaw like a chinstrap and piercing blue eyes. He raised an eyebrow at the sight of the Mandalorian. "Oh," he said, letting go of the doors to cross his arms. "And what do we have here?"

  
"A present," the Mandalorian said as he put his blaster away. He yanked Sloane off the floor and held her in front of him. "For Paxton Holderon."

  
The man's lips curved into a snarling smile. "My father will be pleased." he turned around and gestured for the Mandalorian to follow him inside the room.

  
The Mandalorian shoved Sloane into the room and she stumbled into the center. The room was shaped like a semi-circle that curved away from the double doors. The red carpet covered the entire floor of the office. Weapons from all across the galaxy decorated every wall. There was a desk in the back of the room with a large chair behind it turned away from the door. Two suits of armor stood at either side behind the desk. One set was blue and grand looking with a big crest on the helmet. The other wasn't a suit at all at closer glance. It was an old Separatist "Commando" droid. The Mandalorian clenched his fist when he saw it, and then relaxed when he realized it was decommissioned. "Who is it, Pax?" came and even lower and impatient voice from the chair. 

  
"A bounty hunter, with your biggest prize, father." The man said as he walked to the side of the desk. The chair turned around slowly to reveal a man with dark, graying hair. He rested his chiseled face with facial hair that accentuated his features on a white gloved hand. He wore an even nicer suit with a red plom bloom tucked in the front pocket. He smiled when he saw Sloane standing in the center of the room with the Mandalorian close behind her.

  
"Sloane, my darling!" the older man said as he stood up. He walked around the desk to Sloane and rubbed his hands as he slowly circled her. "My, it has been so very difficult to get an audience with you, but here you finally stand right before me! My look at how you've grown. Last I saw you, you were _this_ tall!" He stopped in front of Sloane and held his hand up to the center of his chest. He smiled sweetly at Sloane as she glared back at him, all of her hysteria dissolved into a simmering hate. The man reached out to cup Sloane's face in one hand, and squeezed her cheeks a bit. "Yes, you have grown into quite the young woman, haven't you dear?" 

  
"Don't touch me!" Sloane snapped and yanked her face out of his hand. The man stood still, his face frozen in a polite smile. After a moment of consideration, he suddenly struck Sloane across the face. The slap was so powerful Sloane fell to the ground. The man clicked his tongue in disapproval as he watched Sloane struggle to get back up on her feet without her hands. When she was finally on her knees he kicked her back down and stepped over her. 

  
"Excuse me for being rude and not introducing myself sooner," the man said as he approached the Mandalorian, his polite smile returned to his face. He extended a gloved hand to the Mandalorian and flashed him a brilliant smile. "My name is Paxton Holderon, and who do I have the pleasure of meeting?"

  
The Mandalorian took his hand, "Just a bounty hunter." He said. 

  
Paxton laughed. He put his arm around the Mandalorian's shoulders and led him over to a table on the right side of the room with drinks and glasses on it. "Now, don't be so modest! You're a _Mandalorian_ , not just some common bounty hunter! Tell me, I must know the name of my most favorite new friend." The Mandalorian hesitated, and Paxton raised an eyebrow. "Shy, my dear friend?"

  
"I'm not very quick to give out my name." the Mandalorian finally said. 

  
Paxton knocked his shoulder, "A man of mystery! How exciting!" He turned towards his son and snapped his fingers. "Pax, be a good sport and bring our new friend his reward." Pax bowed his head and disappeared through a door behind the desk. "Now tell me, my friend. How did you come to arrest this rambunctious little lout?" Paxton said as he poured a drink. He silently offered it to the Mandalorian who shook his head. Paxton shrugged and took a sip of the drink. 

  
The Mandalorian took a deep breath. "I had actually met her once before, and nearly had her but she had gotten away." He looked over at Sloane who had finally gotten to her feet. The side of her face that Paxton had struck was red and started to swell. "She put up a decent fight then, but I didn't let her get away the second time around." 

  
Paxton smiled. "She got away? How did she manage that?"

  
"She dumped a palette of boxes on me. By the time I got up she was gone." the Mandalorian said, and Paxton.

  
"Oh, Sloane, you always were a wily one!" Paxton now looked over at Sloane in the middle of the room. As she struggled to get up, a few of the buttons on her shirt had come undone. The Mandalorian was careful not to look but Paxton raised an eyebrow. "You really have grown, haven't you?" Paxton said quietly, and this time the Mandalorian raised an eyebrow. He remembered the room lined with the slaves locked in cages and followed Paxton's gaze over to Sloane. 

  
The door behind the desk opened and Pax came through with a rather small box. He set it down on the desk and Paxton clapped his hands together. "Enough chatter! Let's get on with our business!" Paxton put his arm around the Mandalorian again and led him over to the desk. He stopped the Mandalorian in front of the box and gestured to it. "Go on then, don't be shy." Paxton urged with a smile. He took another sip of his drink as the Mandalorian hesitantly opened the box. 

  
The Mandalorian snapped his head up to Paxton, who smiled brilliantly. "Where did you get this?" the Mandalorian breathed as he pulled out an ingot of beskar.

  
"I've made some connections during my time as a politician. These were given to me as a gift from a representative from Mandalore." When the Mandalorian jerked his head up, Paxton held up his hand. "The representative was appointed there by the senate, he was not actually from Mandalore." 

  
The Mandalorian turned back to the box. There were five ingots total, more than he had ever seen in one place in his life. "A true Mandalorian would have never given them away." He said quietly. He placed the ingot back inside the box and looked up at Paxton. "Why didn't you just use them yourself? This is a very valuable metal."

  
"It was their value that prevented me from using them, actually." Paxton said as he walked around to the other side of the Mandalorian. "I'm not much of a combatant myself, so I have no real use for armor. I figured the beskar would be better used as currency under my circumstances." He put a hand on the Mandalorian's shoulder and smiled at him. "How fortunate that you were the one to claim the prize. It's good to return the beskar to where it belongs." 

  
"Yes, it's better that way." The Mandalorian said as he closed the box. "Thank you, this is very generous."

  
"My pleasure, my dear friend." Paxton said with a warm smile. He patted the Mandalorian's shoulder and turned towards the door. "I hate to ask you to leave, but I do have pressing matters to attend to. Keep in mind though, that I will be calling upon your services in the future." Paxton said. He walked over to Sloane and put his arm around her shoulder. She tried to jerk away from him again, but then Paxton put his arm around her waist and pulled her up against him. "I can not thank you enough for what you've done for me, mister..." he held out his hand towards the Mandalorian and raised an eyebrow expectantly, trying to fool him into giving his name.

  
The Mandalorian picked up the box and shook Paxton's hand. "It was my pleasure as well." He said, and Paxton laughed.

  
"Ahhh, clever man!" He sighed as he patted the Mandalorian's shoulder. "Pax, why don't you show our friend out of the compound. We wouldn't want him to get lost on his way out. I would take him myself, but I have other matters to attend to." Paxton said, as he squeezed Sloane's hip and smiled down at her. Sloane's face was filled with fear and the Mandalorian clenched his fist.

  
"This way, sir." Pax said as he came up beside the Mandalorian and gestured for the door." The Mandalorian nodded and walked out the door. He spared one last look back at Sloane before Pax closed the double doors. 

  
"Sloane, Sloane, Sloane," Paxton said in an almost sing-songy way. He wrapped both arms around her and pressed his forehead against hers. "What will I do with you?" he mused.

  
"Let me go." Sloane hissed. She jerked back away from Paxton but he pulled her close again, with a tighter grip.

  
Paxton kept one arm wrapped around Sloane and stroked her hair with the other hand. "You always were a troublesome child." He said gently, almost lovingly. "You loved to start fights, and break rules, and did whatever you wanted." 

  
"I said let go, you son of a bitch!" Sloane said. She bashed her head into Paxton's face. He threw her back and covered his face with his hands and groaned. When he finally pulled his hands away and looked up at Sloane, there was a stream of blood that poured out from his nose down to his chin. Paxton stared at the blood that stained his white gloves and slowly clenched them into fists.

  
"And you always had a filthy mouth!" He roared. He swung out and punched Sloane squarely on the temple. She staggered back and kept herself from falling again, but before she could recover Paxton had pulled out a stun baton from the side of his desk and whacked Sloane with it. She fell to the ground and screamed and twitched as the electricity coursed through her body. He pulled the baton back and kicked her over onto her stomach. "You needed discipline!" Paxton snapped and jabbed the baton into her back. "You needed a proper mentor!" Paxton kicked her over again and jabbed the baton into her stomach. Sloane howled and writhed as the electricty coursed through her body. Paxton relented and grabbed Sloane by the collar. He lifted her off the ground and threw her face first over the desk. Paxton wiped the blood from his face and took off his soiled gloves. He tossed them aside and grabbed Sloane by the hair and pulled her head back. Sloane whimpered and Paxton leaned in close and hissed into her ear, "Most importantly you needed to be taught a lesson." 

  
Sloane could hear the baton hum to life with electricity. She took a deep breath to brace herself, and then pulled her hands apart easily and broke the handcuffs. The Mandalorian had sabotaged his handcuffs so that Sloane would be able to break free easily when the time came. Sloane managed to push herself away just in time for the baton to smash into the desk where her head used to be. She jumped away from Paxton and he stared at her in stunned silence. "Sorry, Paxton," Sloane said and grabbed a spear off the wall. She held it out towards him and scowled. "The party's over."

  
Paxton laughed. He tossed the baton away and pulled out his signature vibroknives from under his coat. "The party's over? What, are you some quipping hero now?" he sneered. He spat blood on the ground and took a defensive stance. "Do you really think you can take me on with that spear, girl? Do you even know what you're doing with that thing?" 

  
Sloane and Paxton had begun to slowly circle each other. "Reba taught me everything she knew, and that included how to fight with a spear." Sloane said. 

  
Paxton's expression darkened. "Oh, did she now?" he said. Paxton remembered Reba. She could have been a powerful leader but she held herself back. She was too compassionate, too empathetic to be anything more than a nanny, but Paxton knew a dark secret of hers. Yes, Paxton knew where Reba _really_ came and who her master truly was. "What else did she teach you?" he asked as tightened his grip on his vibroknives.

  
"You'll find out," Sloane said, and then she lunged at Paxton. 

* * *

The Mandalorian and Pax had walked silently down the hall. It wasn't until the elevator doors closed that Pax finally acknowledged the Mandalorian by looking at him through the reflection in the door. "So, a Mandalorian, eh?" Pax said as he crossed his arms. "Are you even a real one?"

  
"As real as you are your father's son." the Mandalorian said. 

  
"So you're from Mandalore then?" Pax asked.

  
"No, I was a foundling. The Mandalorian's adopted me after my parents were killed." the Mandalorian said. Pax nodded.

  
"That was sweet of them," he said almost mockingly, and the Mandalorian clenched his fists.

  
"What are you going to do to the girl?" the Mandalorian had to ask. He didn't like the way Paxton looked at Sloane. His face was almost perfectly polite, friendly, and refined but he got a hungry look in his eyes whenever he looked at her.

  
"Hey, I thought it was guild rules to never ask about the bounties after you turned them in." Pax snapped, and then he smirked. 

  
"This wasn't a guild mission, just a side job." the Mandalorian said as indifferently as he could. "But fair."

  
Pax shrugged his shoulders. "Don't you worry about the little bitch," he said as the doors opened. "She'll just go up on the wall like the rest of the cowardly traitors after my father is done with her." He stepped out in the hall, and the Mandalorian hesitated. Done with her? He was afraid to know what that meant. 

  
"This isn't the way I came in." he said as he stepped out of the elevator and looked around. It was a completely different floor. 

  
"No, there are multiple floors and multiple ways in and out." Pax said and marched ahead. "Keep up, or you'll get lost."

  
The Mandalorian followed after Pax and put his hand on his blaster. He looked around the dark hall and noticed it branched off onto smaller halls every few feet. "What did the girl do?" The Mandalorian asked.

  
"Cheated us out of some money," Paxton said. He stopped at a door and turned towards the Mandalorian. "Say, what is a Mandalorian like you doing in a place like this?" he asked.

  
"Just guild work," the Mandalorian said. 

  
"Oh yeah, who you after?" Pax asked.

  
"Can't talk about it," the Mandalorian said flatly, and Paxton scoffed. 

  
"Right, right. Guild rules." Pax opened the door and stepped through. The door led to a dark tunnel like the one the Mandalorian and Sloane had entered the base through. "You know, bounty hunters have been coming after me and my old man for years. Ever since I was a kid I remember guys coming after us. You know, I'll never forget the first time it happened."

  
"Someone came after you as a child?" the Mandalorian asked. 

  
"No, no, they were after my dad. I just happened to be there." Pax started to feel along the walls, so the Mandalorian turned on the flashlight on his helmet to light up the tunnel. Paxton looked over his shoulder to smile at the Mandalorian and continued to walk forward. "It was shortly after my dad and I arrived here in Coronet City. We were chased off of our home planet, something about them not liking my dad's views or whatever." Pax continued. "We were going back to our apartment, and a bounty hunter shot our driver. The speeder swerved and crashed into building. The bounty hunter probably would have finished us off if it weren't for the fact we crashed right in front of the police. I used to be scared of going anywhere with my dad for a few months after that." He stopped at a door at the end of the tunnel. He put one hand on the door handle, and turned back towards the Mandalorian. "You wanna know what made me not afraid of going out anymore?"

  
"What?" the Mandalorian asked. He clenched the box of beskar in his hand. 

  
"My dad said if I started going out again, he would teach me to be strong, and then one day I would be strong enough that I'll never have to be afraid of anything ever again." Pax opened the door and they stepped into an abandoned airship hangar. It was a bigger building than the the Bloodless Base, and had a high ceiling. Large windows that were mostly broken loomed overhead and let the moonlight in. 

  
"Your dad must have been a good teacher," the Mandalorian said. From where he stood, he could see no doors. There was a lone chair in the middle of a beam of moonlight. 

  
"The best," Pax said. He took a few steps forward into the hangar, and then stopped and turned around to face the Mandalorian with his hands in his pockets. "You know, you don't see Mandalorians much anymore." Pax said. He pulled one hand out to rub his jaw. "Especially around here in Coronet City. Nah, I bet you guys hide in more isolated places where you're less likely to be found. Which brings up the question again: what are you doing here, Mando?"

  
The Mandalorian crossed his arms, "Just a simple mission. Debtor, nothing more."

  
"Right, right, simple mission." Pax said, and then he held up one finger. "Here's the thing though: why would anyone send a _Mandalorian_ after some debtor? Seems a bit overkill, don't you think?"

  
"I take whatever jobs I can find." the Mandalorian said. 

  
"Oh, but don't you guys have a reputation of being the best?" Pax said. He stepped closer to the Mandalorian. "I mean, you're a _Mandalorian_! Not a debt collector. Chasing after debtors is below you. You're too good for that kind of work." Pax put his hands back in his pockets and looked at the Mandalorian down his nose. "You know, if I didn't know any better, I would think you were hiding something from me."

  
"What could I be hiding?" the Mandalorian asked. "I brought you your girl. What more do you want?"

  
"How did you know where to find us?" Pax asked. He raised an eyebrow and took another step closer to the Mandalorian. "Tell me, how did you figure out where our base was? The message we sent out said to drop off the bounty at dock four."

  
"I forced the girl to tell me after I captured her." The Mandalorian snapped.

  
"She told you?" Pax said, taken aback. "Now, why the hell would a bounty tell the hunter where to deliver her?" Pax had started to circle around the Mandalorian.

  
"I have ways of making people talk," the Mandalorian said dryly.

  
Pax nodded. "Right, and so do I." He looked behind him at the chair in the center of the warhouse, illuminated by the moon, and continued to circle the Mandalorian. "My dad and I have been hunted after for years. So much so, that it's made my dad a bit paranoid. When he found out that a Mandalorian was spotted around the city, it set off all of his alarms. Can you guess why?" the Mandalorian stayed silent, so Pax continued. "A member of ours said he spotted you on dock ten. Said you had a little fight with Sloane and she kicked your ass." Pax chuckled a little and the Mandalorian sighed. So word had gotten out about that, huh? "He then said you paid a visit to an old friend of ours. A little Rodian named Vigo. Do you know him, Mando?"

  
The Mandalorian shrugged. "Doesn't sound familiar," he said casually. 

  
"Really? 'Cause our boys said you spent an awful long time in his shop, and then you went back the next night when our boys were picking him up. Does _that_ sound familiar?" Pax had done a full circle around the Mandalorian and stopped right in front of him. "Do you remember Vigo now, Mando?"

  
The Mandalorian uncrossed his arms and clenched his fists at his side. He looked over Pax's shoulder at the chair and a wave of anger washed over him. He remembered Reya's fragile state as he begged him to bring Vigo home safely. He remembered seeing Vigo frozen on the wall in the hall before Paxton's office, and how Sloane panicked and tried to run. The Mandalorian drew his blaster in a flash and aimed it at Pax. "What did you do to him?" he snapped. "What did you do to Vigo?"

  
Pax had pulled his own blasters out from his pockets a second after the Mandalorian drew his. "Nothing you wouldn't have done." Pax said as he and the Mandalorian started to circle each other. "Don't feel so bad, he didn't reveal anything! No matter what we did to him, he wouldn't say a damned thing. We just knew it couldn't have been a coincidence that you were here and working with a deserter." Pax fired at the Mandalorian but missed by a long shot. The Mandalorian fired back and ducked back into the tunnel for some cover.

  
"You son of a bitch!" the Mandalorian shouted as he put his pistol away and pulled out his rifle. 

  
"Hey, my mother was a lovely woman!" Pax called back and fired wildly into the tunnel. "It's my father who's the bastard."

  
"Oh yeah, and what happened to your mother?" The Mandalorian asked as he tucked the small box of beskar ingots under his belt.

  
"Killed by political rivals! That's why we needed off our home planet!" Pax shouted back.

  
The Mandalorian needed only a second to aim at Pax and take a shot. He shot him in the arm and Pax ran out of view of the tunnel. The Mandalorian pulled out a smoke bomb from a pouch on his belt and rolled it over to where he saw Pax run. It exploded and released a cloud of smoke into the air. Pax started to choke as he was in the middle of it. The Mandalorian tipped down the scope on the side of his helmet and turned on the thermalscopic view. He silently made his way over to Pax. He threw down another smoke bomb as the first started to clear. Pax buried his mouth in his elbow, squeezed his eyes shut, and started to fire wildly in every direction. He wasn't even close to his target though, and the Mandalorian easily snuck up behind him and locked him into a choke hold. Pax gagged and aimed the blaster over his head, but the Mandalorian twisted his hand behind his back before he could shoot. 

  
"You sonuva..." Pax began, but then drifted off. He went limp in the Mandalorian's arms. The Mandalorian waited for a moment, and then slowly lowered him to the ground. He knelt with one knee on Pax's back and removed the blaster from his right hand, and when he went for his left hand Pax's elbow shot back and nailed the Mandalorian in the head. The Mandalorian fell back and Pax dove on top of him. The Mandalorian grabbed both of his wrists and struggled to hold them both back. The Mandalorian grunted and managed to force Pax's own fist into his eye. When he was stunned, Mandalorian grabbed Pax's left wrist with his right hand, and then punched Pax's elbow with his left with so much force he heard it snap. Pax howled in pain the Mandalorian threw him off. 

  
Pax writhed on his side and held his broken arm. His clenched his eyes shut with pain, and when he finally opened them, the Mandalorian was standing over him with his blaster drawn. "I can bring you hot, or I can bring you in cold." the Mandalorian said. Pax spat on his boots. 

  
"You son of a bitch!" Pax snapped at him. He tried his best to stand up but fell back down when he tried to use his broken arm for support. "You'll never take me!" Pax howled. "You'll be dead by daylight! You'll be hung up on the wall along with the bitch and the coward! You'll never-" The Mandalorian ended Pax's tirade by kicking him squarely in the face. He went limp again, and the Mandalorian nudged him with his foot just to be sure he was really out this time. The Mandalorian pulled down his scope again to check for Pax's vitals, but he wasn't alive. The Mandalorian sighed. He would still get a reward for Pax dead, but he certainly would have been more valuable alive. He turned the flashlight on and looked around the warehouse for a door. He saw two hangar doors on the far side of the room that were chained shut. The Mandalorian stepped over Pax and blasted the lock with his pistol. He heaved one hangar door opened just enough to get himself through, and then went back for Pax. As he walked out of the hangar he passed the lone chair in the center of the warehouse. I was splattered with dried green blood that was still iridescent in the moonlight. The Mandalorian sighed and hoped that Vigo was still alive in the carbonite, and that he would be able to recover from his wounds. 

  
The Mandalorian's ship, the Razor Crest, wasn't very far from the hangar Pax had led him to. Sloane had told the Mandalorian that the tunnel system extended to all the buildings owned by one company that went bankrupt years ago. Paxton preferred to keep his operations in one building, but he had at least five at his disposal. The Bloodless were all still inside and even the guard wasn't outside at his post anymore. The Mandalorian opened the bay door on the side of his ship and tossed Pax into a freezer he kept in case his bounties died. He wished he had cells or something to keep his bounties contained in, but his ship was too small and old for that kind of modification. The Mandalorian had no choice but to collect his bounties one at a time and just kept them cuffed and subdued in one of the chairs in the cockpit with him or in the freezer. With Pax dead, it would make thereturn to Nevarro a little easier without the need to watch over two prisoners, but he still had no idea how he would handle Paxton. There was no time to consider that, however. The Mandalorian opened his armory, which was barely filled, and grabbed a pouch of remote detonators. He attached them to his belt and put the box of beskar into his armory as it was the closest thing he had to a safe and locked his ship as he returned to the hangar. 

  
The Mandalorian closed the door behind him as he reentered the hangar and quietly made his way back to the elevator. He hit the button for the ground floor and cracked his knuckles as he ascended alone. Sloane had told the Mandalorian that the generators for the builiding were still on the ground floor. The only way to access them was to go in through one of the secret tunnels that led to the underground floors and then take the elevator up. The elevator ride was long and quiet without anyone there to chatter, which is how the Mandalorian preferred it anyway. There was thankfully only one elevator that still worked in the building and all of the Bloodless were distracted at the party. All the Mandalorian could do was hope Sloane could hold her own against Paxton. If the Mandalorian took down Pax relatively easily, then it shouldn't be very difficult for Sloane, right? 

  
The elevator doors finally opened. The room he entered was filled with generators. They were smaller models, less noisy, but there were at least sixteen of them all packed in the open room. The Mandalorian ran up and down the room and threw the charges on all of the generators. He made sure there were at least four on each one, and then returned to the elevator. The original plan was for the Mandalorian to go directly down to the office and retrieve Sloane and Paxton, but he still had some charges left and knew just what to do with them. The Mandalorian went down a floor and stepped out into the hallway. It was the first floor he had entered when he arrived at the Bloodless base. He turned on the thermal view on the visor of his helmet and looked to the room next to the elevator. It glowed red with body heat as all the slaves were huddled in there, but so was the room next to it. The Mandalorian walked a bit further down the hall to the second room and peered inside. The room was dark, but the light from the hall illuminated the room just enough for the Mandalorian to be greeted by a roomful of eyes.

  
A cry went up in the room and the Mandalorian stepped in so that the door would close behind him and hushed the crowd. It was lined with cages on either side but the room was filled with men instead of women. The men went silent and all eyes bored into the Mandalorian with a mix of fear and curiousity. They all seemed to blend together, but one stood out to he Mandalorian. One man, a Togruta, clutched the bars of his cage and watched the Mandalorian intently. He looked to be middle aged, with faded red skin and wrinkles that warped his face in worry. The Mandalorian locked the door behind him just in case and approached the man. "How many rooms are holding prisoners?" he asked quietly.

  
"Just us, and the next room over has all of the women. Are you here to save us?" the Togruta asked. His eyes were wide and intense as he gazed into the Mandalorian's black visor. The Mandalorian silently nodded and everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

  
"How do I free all of you?" The Mandalorian asked as he looked around the room at all of the cages. There was no way he would be able to bust all of the locks without drawing unwanted attention.

  
"In the hall there is a breaker box between the two rooms. It connects all the power to our cells. Cut the power and we'll all be free." the Togruta said excitedly.

  
The Mandalorian pulled out his detonator. "I have the generators upstairs all rigged to explode. Why don't I just blow them now instead?"

  
The Togruta furiously shook his head. "No! We'll all be locked inside the building. All of the doors are connected to the power. If you blow the generators, all of the doors will lock and we'll all be trapped inside!" 

  
"How can we trust him!" a voice hissed from across the room. The Mandalorian spun around and found the man it was attached to. It was a dirty looking man with an overgrown beard and mangy hair. "He's a bounty hunter! He's here for some _one_ , not us!"

  
All eyes went back to the Mandalorian. The Togruta pursed his lips and reached out through the bars to put his hand on the Mandalorian's shoulder. "Tell us the truth, bounty hunter. Why are you here?"

  
"I'm here for the Holderons," the Mandalorian said and the room erupted with gasps and whispers. "I already killed Pax, and my partner is working on containing Paxton. We're going to cut the power and call the authorities as soon as we leave, but if I can get you all out first before the facility locks down, I will."

  
The Togruta gave the Mandalorian a smile that restrained his overwhelming emotion. He squeezed the Mandalorian's shoulder and bowed his head. "Free us, and we will do all that we can to help." he said finally.

  
"As soon as I disconnect the breaker, you all have to escape the facility as fast as you can. Understood?" The Mandalorian said. He looked around the room and all the men nodded eagerly. The Mandalorian nodded silently again and left the room. He looked back once at all of the hopeful eyes that watched him and slipped out the door. The breaker box was right were the Togruta said it would be, and the Mandalorian placed a charge on it. He activated it manually and ran back into the room for shelter. The prisoners all looked at him in confusion, and then the charge exploded in the hall and all the cage doors clicked open. The men all hesitated and looked at each other in shock.

  
The Mandalorian approached the cage the Togruta was in, and opened the door. "You're all free." He said with a smirk, though no one could see it. He ran to the door with all of the men at tow, but as soon as he stepped into the hall a blaster bolt whipped by him. He backed into the room and pulled out his rifle. The explosion seemed to have attracted the attention of the guard from the door and three other men. The Mandalorian easily shot two down and then turned back to the men behind him. "Go!" the Togruta urged him forward. "We'll take care of them! You go finish your mission." The Mandalorian nodded and then paused. He held out his rifle to the Togruta.

  
"I only have the one to give. Make it count." The Mandalorian said as he pulled out his pistol. He nodded and took off down the hall towards the elevator. He was going to fire behind him but the freed slaves had already flooded the halls. He pushed the button for the elevator, but the door to the room where the female slaves were was still closed. The elevator hadn't opened yet, so the Mandalorian stepped inside the room. The women had stepped out of their cells but were huddled together in the center, confused and unsure of what to do. The Mandalorian waved them out the door. "You're all free! Go already!" He said, and the women flinched in shock. 

  
The women all looked at each other in hestation and one stepped forward. "Who are you?" she asked in a weak voice. Suddenly a male Twi-lek in rags came up from behind the Mandalorian and pushed him out of the way as he burst into the room. He cried out something in his native language, and the young female Twi-lek who had reached out to the Mandalorian and Sloane earlier shrieked and ran into his arms. 

  
"Go now!" The Mandalorian shouted again. He backed out of the room and let the women rush by. The elevator doors finally opened and a random Bloodless who was probably on one of the floors below gasped at the chaos in the hall. The slaves flooded the hall and attacked the few Bloodless who came into the hall. The Mandalorian simply shot the Bloodless in the elevator and didn't even bother to remove him before he entered and hit the button for the bottom floor. As the door closed he could see the Togruta raise his rifle in a war cry as the slaves charged into the Bloodless Party. Freeing the slaves was not a part of the original plan, but just as Sloane would have said, what was the Mandalorian supposed to do? _Not_ help them?

  
The Mandalorian rolled his shoulders and readied himself for a fight as the elevator descended. Sloane did not hesitate to stress how dangerous Paxton was. She even begged the Mandalorian to switch opponents, but Paxton had made the final decision in the office when he told the Mandalorian to leave with his son. The Mandalorian checked that his pistol was fully charged and took a deep breath. The ride down felt longer than it did when he first went down with Sloane, but maybe it was just the adrenaline that course through his veins that made him impatient. If what Sloane had told him about Paxton was true, then the Mandalorian knew he had to get to her fast. He was already delayed enough with the slave escape, and all he could do was hope that he wasn't too late. The elevator pinged when it arrived and the Mandalorian had his pistol at the ready by the time the doors opened. The hall was empty and quiet, which made the Mandalorian nervous.

  
The Mandalorian never put his pistol down as he made his way down the hall. He kept his sights trained on the door as he crept closer. He was about a quarter of the way down the long hall when he heard blaster fire from Paxton's office. The Mandalorian abandoned his caution and broke into a dead sprint down the hall. He heard muffled shouts from the office, and then more blaster fire. The Mandalorian was nearly at the door and braced himself to burst through when the doors swung open and hit him instead. He was shoved against the wall by a frantic Paxton as he tried to rush by. He made it maybe four feet before blue rings followed him through the door and hit him squarely in the back. Paxton collapsed on contact, and the Mandalorian had no clue what to make of what he just saw. He looked at Paxton's limp body on the ground, and then slowly stood up and leaned forward to look through the doorway. 

  
Sloane stood breathlessly in the middle of the room. She held a blaster out in front of her and held a spear in her other hand. The cheek that Paxton had slapped earlier was swollen and the other had a bleeding cut. Her shirt was slashed open and revealed her undergarment. She didn't even seem to notice the Mandalorian as she doubled over. She put her hands on her knees and took several deep breaths. The Mandalorian rushed over to her and hovered a hand above her back as he hesitated to touch her. "What happened?" he asked as he looked back at Paxton. "Where did you get that blaster?"

  
Sloane jumped when the Mandalorian spoke, and then breathed a sigh of relief when she realized it was just him. She waved the blaster in front of her, too tired to hold it up properly. "Paxton had it in his desk. He tried to shoot me, I took it and stunned him." she said breathlessly. She took a deep breath and stood up with her hands on her hips.

  
"What kind of blaster is that? What the hell did you just shoot him with?" the Mandalorian demanded. He had made it very clear to Sloane to not kill Paxton, and here she was just shooting him point blank!

  
"What," Sloane said as she held up the blaster. "Haven't you ever used the stun setting on your blaster before?" She flicked a little switch near the trigger back and forth to show the Mandalorian the two settings.

  
"Blaster's can be set to stun?" he said and looked at his own pistol. He had never seen such a switch on any of the blasters he had used before. Sloane opened her mouth to ask more, then closed it when she realized that maybe Mandalorians weren't the "stunning" type. The Mandalorian looked back at Sloane after he searched his pistol for a 'stun' setiting and then quickly looked away. "You're shirt. It's-" the Mandalorian looked out into the hall to give Sloane some modesty, but then his eyes fell on Paxton. He was still unconscious and face down on the floor. The Mandalorian remembered the hungry look in his eyes whenever he looked at Sloane, the room full of caged women he just freed, and then Pax's comment of how his father will freeze Sloane in carbonite "when he's done with her." 

  
"What did he do?" the Mandalorian asked Sloane, suddenly angry again. 

  
"Oh, he just slashed it." Sloane said casually. She tried to adjust her shirt in a way to cover her chest, but there wasn't much shirt left to do that with. She shrugged and let the fabric fall where it may. "I'm lucky he only got my shirt. He did slice my cheek though. Does it look bad?" Sloane looked up at the Mandalorian and tried her best to see her face in the reflection of his helmet. Her face was blurred and distorted in the unpolished, angular metal. Sloane was merely annoyed by her slashed shirt, and was completely oblivious to the notes of anger in the Mandalorian's voice earlier. She had no idea how deep his scowl was underneathe his helmet. The Mandalorian sighed and gently cupped Sloane's chin to hold her head steady. He bent close and tipped her head up a bit to get a better look at the cut. 

  
"Nothing bacta spray won't help with." He finally said. He wiped away the blood with his thumb and Sloane winced when he touched her tender cheek. "I have some in the ship. We should get going."

  
"Right, just need to-" Sloane began, but was cut off when Paxton groaned. The Mandalorian snapped his pistol back up and he and Sloane looked at him through the doorway. Paxton groaned again and pushed himself up onto his forearms. He struggled to wake up as though he had a hangover. Paxton's vision was blurred at first, but he blinked it back into focus. His head was foggy and he was unsure of what had happened. Paxton gasped when his memory returned to him, and then gagged when he was yanked upward by the back of his coat. The Mandalorian spun him around and gripped him by the collar. 

  
"The Mandalorian!" Paxton choked out. He held onto the Mandalorian's wrists as he tried to steady himself. He gulped and pointed a shaky hand at Sloane. "Thank goodness you're here, she-"

  
"She's with me." the Mandalorian interrupted, and Paxton's face turned paler than it already was. The Mandalorian tightened his grip on Paxton's collar. "So you sent your son to try and kill me, huh?" 

  
"You don't understand." Paxton said with a worried smile. "It was nothing personal. Just business." The Mandalorian kept his grip on Paxton's collar and dragged him into the office. He slammed Paxton onto his desk and pulled out his knife. The Mandalorian held it to Paxton's throat, and Paxton threw up his hands in surrender. "Let's not get to hasty, hunter! We can talk about this, man to man. What do you want? Money? Power? I can give it you! Name it, it's yours!" 

  
"I want answers." the Mandalorian said and pressed the edge of his knife against Paxton's throat, gentle enough so that it wouldn't break the skin but with enough pressure so that Paxton would feel it there. "What did you do to Sloane while I was away?" The Mandalorian growled, and Sloane jumped. That was not the kind of information she thought the Mandalorian wanted. Sloane looked down at her shirt, and suddenly felt self conscious of her exposed skin. She crossed her arms over her chest and looked away as Paxton sputtered an explanation.

  
"What did I do?" Paxton spat. "I fended her off! She attacked me with a spear! Your handcuffs did nothing to hold her back!"

  
"And what were you going to do to her before that?" the Mandalorian asked and pressed the knife deeper into Paxton's throat. A drop of blood slowly made it's way down his throat and Paxton's eyes bulged. 

  
"I wasn't going to do anything-" Paxton wheezed out before Sloane cut him off.

  
"Mando, we need to go!" Sloane snapped. She pounded the spear on the ground in frustration. "Someone's going to find us! Let's just get this over with!" 

  
"We can't get him out with him alive!" The Mandalorian said. He still held Paxton down on the desk but he twisted around to look at Sloane. Her face was red and her fingers tightened around the spear. 

  
"Wait!" Paxton shouted and caught the attention of the Mandalorian and Sloane. "You just can't kill me!" 

  
"And why not?" the Mandalorian said and brought the knife back to his throat. "I already killed your son. There's nothing stopping me from killing you, too." 

  
"You killed my..." Paxton said as he grew even more pale. His lower lip trembled slightly and he could feel his throat tighten with emotion. He stared into the cold, metal helmet of the Mandalorian and saw his fate. Paxton wasn't a very loving man, but he did care for his son. He raised him alone after his wife passed and molded Pax in his own image. Paxton had always thought he would die and leave his power and fortune to his son, but now there was no heir to his throne. Paxton grabbed the Mandalorian's wrist and pushed it away slightly. "Let's make a deal then. You already have my son. Just take him, and I'll let you and Sloane walk out without interruption." he said coldly. Whatever sadness he had felt for his son was now smothered by an instinctual need to survive. 

  
"You're just going to sell out your son like that?" Sloane asked in horrified astonishment. "Really, you'll sacrifice him to save your own ass?"

  
"Hang on, Sloane." the Mandalorian said and Sloane huffed. He turned back to Paxton and tipped his head to the side. "Go on with what you were saying."

  
Paxton swallowed. "You can't just leave with me. My men might be at the party but they'll notice I'm gone and will come for me eventually. They'll come for you. Let me go, and I'll order them not to attack." The Mandalorian seemed to consider it, and Paxton's lips twitched with a smile. The Mandalorian put his knife away and Sloane gasped in shock. He let go of Paxton's collar, and then took a step back. Paxton righted himself and smoothed a rogue piece of hair back into place. "Wise choice, my good man."

  
The Mandalorian shook his head. "I'm not letting you go, I just needed to get my detonator." He held up his hand to reveal a small cylinder with a big red button on the top. Paxton gasped and leaned away and Sloane smirked. "One wrong move and I'm cutting the power to this facility." The Mandalorian threatened.

  
"We'll all be trapped!" Paxton tried to argue.

  
"Not if we escape through you're personal escape route. Which is the only one not connected to the grid." Sloane said smartly. She came up behind the Mandalorian and smiled sweetly at Paxton who scowled back. 

  
"You're insufferable!" Paxton spat at Sloane. He then turned his fury towards the Mandalorian. "You'll rue the day you crossed me, Mandalorian! I have powerful friends in all reaches of the galaxy! If I can evade the Empire, then I can escape from you as well! You'll never live a day without someone chasing you! You'll never know peace again!"

  
"I'm a Mandalorian!" Mando said as he drew his blaster and pointed it at Paxton. "My people have never known peace for hundreds of years."

  
Sloane backed away from the Mandalorian. She could feel how tense he was and it frightened her. His grip on his blaster was so tight she was afraid it will crumble in his hands and his thumb lowered onto the button on the detonator. Sloane set the spear and blaster down and stepped closer to the Mandalorian again as she was compelled to do something to try and calm him. She put her hand gently on the Mandalorian's arm that held the blaster and pushed down. His arm was strong and didn't budge under her hand. Sloane saw his helmet twitch a little towards her and figured the Mandalorian was looking at her out of the corner of his eye. Sloane squeezed his forearm with her hand and looked him where she thought his eye would be. "Put the blaster down. You need him alive, remember?" Sloane said. The Mandalorian's arm tensed tighter under her grip, and then relaxed and Sloane was finally able to push it down. Then his other hand flashed out and nailed Paxton right in the face. Sloane gasped as he crumpled back against his desk, and the Mandalorian snatched his arm away from Sloane. 

  
"What are we going to do about him?" the Mandalorian said as he glared at Paxton. He didn't look at Sloane as he said it. He was angry, but not at her, and he didn't want to lash out. He just stared at Paxton's body collapsed over his desk and put the detonator back in the pouch on his belt.

  
"Well..." Sloane wasn't sure. She honestly didn't think they would have made it this far. The original plan was just to carry him out, but as soon as Paxton gained consciousness he would find a way to escape. Sloane bit her lip and looked around the room, and her eyes fell on the carbon freezer built into the left wall. "Have you ever used a carbon freezer?"

  
"A what?" the Mandalorian said and followed Sloane's gaze.

  
"A carbon freezer. It's what people use to freeze things in carbonite." Sloane stepped closer to the freezer. The Wandering Eye had one, although they seldom ever used it on people. They usually used it to freeze perishable goods that wouldn't survive long trips. "It's easy, I'll show you." She walked across the room over to the carbon freezer and stood next to it. She smiled at the Mandalorian expectantly, and waited for his response. He didn't say anything. He just slung Paxton over his shoulder and followed her. 

  
The Mandalorian slammed Paxton into the freezer and the impact jarred him awake. Paxton's head was groggy again as he looked up at Sloane and the Mandalorian as they stood over him. "What..." Paxton moaned as his head spun. He held his throbbing head and looked around the room. 

  
"Stand him up straight. He needs to be all the way in." Sloane said. The Mandalorian grabbed Paxton by the shoulders and roughly propped him up against the back of the freezer. Paxton looked around and struggled in the Mandalorian's grasp as he realized what was happening. 

  
"W-wait!" Paxton pleaded. "Wait, give me a moment! We can talk about this!" He smiled at the Mandalorian and a shiver went down his spine as Paxton could feel his glare. He looked to Sloane with a nervous smile. "My dear, we've known each other for years! I always knew you had so much potential within you. Surely we can work something out!" 

  
Sloane pursed her lips in thought. The Mandalorian held Paxton against the back wall of the freezer with one hand and looked down at her. "What are you thinking?" the Mandalorian asked.

  
"I don't know," Sloane said. She tapped her finger on her chin in thought. "Paxton does have a point."

  
"Really?" the Mandalorian said, taken aback. 

  
"Yeah. Hey, why don't we freeze him while we think on it?" Sloane said with a smirk. The Mandalorian quickly let go and brought his arm back and Sloane slammed the button to activate the freezer. Paxton howled as he was flooded with gas. The Mandalorian and Sloane backed away and waved the lingering gas away from themselves. When the gas settled, all that was left was Paxton's figure, trapped in a scream with arms stretched out for mercy in carbonite. Sloane checked the side of the carbonite slab for the blinking lights. She looked at the Mandalorian and smiled, "All clear. He's still alive." The Mandalorian helped Sloane pull Paxton out of the freezer and she activated the anit-gravity. When she looked back up at the Mandalorian he was marvelling at the carbon freezer.

  
"I've got to get one of those," he said in wonder. He jerked back to reality and jabbed his thumb over his shoulder at the door. "I'll go get Vigo." The Mandalorian said and then turned away.

  
"Don't unfreeze him! We should take him to a medical facility first to treat his wounds and carbon sickness!" Sloane called after the Mandalorian. He disappeared into the hall and Sloane turned towards the door behind Paxton's desk. She sighed and pushed him through the door into a narrow hallway. Paxton's slab barely fit but she managed to squeezed him through the short hall into Paxton's apartment. Again, the room looked like it belonged in a fancy hotel rather than a gang base. All of the furniture was wood, a purely aesthetic material because of it's limited capabilities and flimsy build compared to a more practical metal or composite material. A large chandelier dangled from the ceiling and cast a warm glow all around the room. A large bed sat on a raised floor in the center of the right wall, and a slightly smaller bed sat beside in on the floor. Sloane let out a low whistle as she looked around the room. She had never been in Paxton's apartment before (a blessing really) and never thought she would be. The only reason that she knew there was a secret exit in Paxton's apartment was because Reba had stolen the schematics of the entire Bloodless base before they parted ways.

  
Sloane walked over to a pair of double doors and pulled them open to reveal a closet full of suits. She pulled out a shirt for Vigo to replace the one Paxton had slashed, and then pulled out another shirt for herself. It was a brilliant red color made from the finest fabric she had ever felt in her entire life. Just as she buttoned it closed the Mandalorian came through the door and pushed Vigo ahead of him. Sloane judged by the sudden jerk he made that he was just as stunned as she was by the apartment. He looked at Sloane and tipped his head to the side. Sloane jumped into a confident pose and raised an eyebrow. "What do you think?" She asked as she showed off the new shirt.

  
The Mandalorian chuckled to himself and shook his head. "We should go," he said as he pushed Vigo ahead of him. 

  
Sloane smiled and felt pleased with herself as she made the Mandalorian laugh. She took at step towards Paxton, and then something caught her eye across the room. "Hey, look!" she said as she pointed at the far wall. "Pax left the safe open!" 

  
The Mandalorian turned to where Sloane pointed and sure enough, there was a small open safe in the wall. Something glinted at the Mandalorian and he walked over to the safe. He reached inside and pulled out another ingot of beskar. There were five more ingots in the safe. "Looks like Paxton still had some more beskar left over." he said as he rubbed the metal in his hands.

  
"Well, take it." Sloane said, and the Mandalorian looked back at her. She shrugged and crossed her arms. "Hey, it's not like he's going to be using it anymore." she said and knocked on Paxton's carbonite slab. The Mandalorian hesitated, and then took the rest of the ingots and put them in the pouch that once held the explosives.   
"Let's go," The Mandalorian said as he turned back to Sloane.

  
"Yeah, about that," Sloane said as she look at the wall on the opposite wall of the door. The emergency exit was supposed to be there, but all that was there was a wall of paintings. She walked over to the wall and pressed her hands against it. "We just gotta figure out how to open the door."

  
The Mandalorian crossed the room and stood beside her. He put one hand on the wall and looked up at the paintings. "The exit is supposed to be here?"

  
"Yeah. Well, that's what Reba's schematics said." She started to press on the wall as if she expected it to give way under her hands. When that didn't work she started to press the paintings. The Mandalorian started to press on the wall too, and then something caught his eye. There was a patch of wall where the paint was barely darker that the rest. He pressed it with his hand, and it vibrated under his hand but nothing happened.

  
"What's this?" the Mandalorian said as he stepped aside to give Sloane room. He pressed harder on the wall and it vibrated more aggressively but still, nothing happened.

  
"Let me see," Sloane said. The Mandalorian moved his hand away and Sloane pressed her hand against the square. It vibrated under her palm and she pulled away in shock. She then pressed against it with her finger tips. The wall seemed to vibrate only where there was pressure applied. Sloane dragged one finger tip in a squiggle from the top to the bottom of the square and the wall gave a disapproving beep. 

  
"It's a pattern?" the Mandalorian asked impatiently. They were never going to figure it out. 

  
"Wait, give me a minute," Sloane said. The Mandalorian backed away from Sloane and crossed his arms. 

  
_This is going to take too long_ , he thought bitterly. He watched as Sloane tried a few patterns and then sighed. "We're not going to figure it out." the Mandalorian said and drew his blaster to just shoot the panel. 

  
Sloane still concentrated on the wall as she waved her hand dismissively at the Mandalorian. "Wait, wait! Just give me a moment." She said and the Mandalorian heaved a sigh. She tapped her fingers against her chin as she thought about what the pattern could be. She tried just about every pattern she could think of: the Bloodless symbol, Paxton's monogram, the number four in galactice basic (Paxton had a touch of OCD and had a fixation with the number four). Nothing worked. Sloane looked up at the painting above the square. It was a picture of a woman with fair skin, baby pink hair, and glittering blue eyes. It was a painting of Paxton's late wife. Sloane smiled and tried one more pattern: a simple five pointed star, as Paxton used to call his wife his "shining star." The wall beeped agreeably and a section in the center of the wall spilt apart and disappeared and into the floor and ceiling. The wall revealed a dark tunnel that led to a service elevator. Sloane smirked over her shoulder at the Mandalorian who was visibly surprised she figured it out. 

  
"You figured it out?" the Mandalorian asked. 

  
Sloane walked around Paxton and pushed him through the door. "It's all about getting to know people, Mando. You'll be amazed at what secrets they'll tell you." The Mandalorian turned on his flashlight again and followed her into the tunnel with Vigo. 

  
"Do you know where this tunnel will take us?" he asked. 

  
"Um, should lead us to the neighboring building." Sloane said. She had to crawl underneath Paxton in order to summon the elevator. It was an older, industrial elevator and Sloane had to hold a lever down until the elevator reached them. "As soon as we get up you'll be good to blow the generators."

  
The elevator door creaked open and Sloane and the Mandalorian pushed their slabs inside. Sloane stroked Vigo's face as the elevator ascended. While the carbonite didn't capture a lot of detail, Sloane could tell there was a deep cut on his cheek and the fingers on one hand were horribly bent. She sighed sadly and the Mandalorian was unsure of what to do. He wasn't exactly the type to comfort people, but somehow Sloane's sadness made him upset. 

  
"Don't worry," he finally said, and Sloane looked up at him. "I'm... sure he'll be fine." The Mandalorian said awkwardly as he knew that what he said wasn't much, but it made Sloane smile a little so it was enough. 

  
"Yeah," Sloane said, surprised by the Mandalorian's attempt to say something reassuring. "Yeah, he'll be fine. We all will be." The elevator groaned to a stop. Sloane pulled the lever to open the door and the elevator creaked so loudly she was afraid the thing was about to collapse. It didn't, luckily, and Sloane and the Mandalorian quickly got off the elevator in case it did. The warehouse they were in was small and had big doors across the room. 

  
The Mandalorian pulled out the detonator from his built and offered it to Sloane. "Will you like to do the honors?" he said. Sloane crossed her arms and shrugged.

  
"Nah, it's alright. You can do it." She said, even though she actually really wanted to. The Mandalorian pressed the button with his thumb and the ground shook. Screams and shouts came from outside the hangar and Sloane saw shadows run back and forth under the door.

  
"What the hell is going on out there?" Sloane asked. Did the police discover the base location and started a raid? 

  
"I think those are the slaves," the Mandalorian said as he pushed Vigo towards the door. 

  
"The what?" Sloane said as she tried to keep up with the Mandalorian. "Mando, what do you mean?"

  
"I set them free." he said as he blasted the lock on the door.

  
"You did _what_?" Sloane stopped in her tracks and gaped at the Mandalorian. He lifted the door and sure enough the slaves were outside. They all ran past towards the streets desperate to get away from their captivity, and the explosion. 

  
"I set them free." the Mandalorian said again. He looked down at Sloane who had ran up beside him to get closer to the entrance. She watched as the slaves all scattered through the abandoned buildings. Not once did any of them stop or hesitate. 

  
"That wasn't part of the plan," Sloane said as she looked up at the Mandalorian.

  
"Someone had to help them," the Mandalorian said as he pushed Vigo ahead. His cheeks burned as he could feel Sloane's gaze bore into him from behind. He glanced at her over his shoulder and she just stood in the doorway of the warehouse with a knowing smile. "Come on, let's go already." the Mandalorian said impatiently. The ship was right in front of them as the warehouse was literally right next to the Bloodless base.

  
The old Togruta stood beside his ship with two younger Togrutas. One was a young man, and the other one a teenage girl. They were the same colors as the older Togruta and bore a striking resemblence. The Togruta, who still had the Mandalorian's rifle, turned to face him as he approached. "This is your ship, I presume?" he asked.

  
"Yes," the Mandalorian said as he stopped in front of him. "Is this your family?" he gestured to the two younger Togrutas beside him. 

  
The old Togruta smiled and nodded. "Yes, they are my children. We were all taken captive by the Bloodless." The Togruta put the rifle down and reached out to take the Mandalorian's hand. He bowed deeply, and his children did the same. "Thank you, kind hunter. All of us here who you helped tonight are in your debt."

  
The show of gratitude made the Mandalorian feel awkward, but he tried to be polite. "There is no debt." he quickly said. He picked up the rifle and held it out to the Togruta again. "Just promise me you'll stay safe."

  
The Togruta smiled and folded his hands in front of him. "I do not need that anymore. Thank you for your generosity and mercy, hunter." He looked past the Mandalorian at Sloane and smiled brightly. "Ahh, and this is you're partner?" 

  
"Yes, I'm Sloane Savotta!" she said with a smile as she walked up to shake the Togruta's hand. He took it and bowed to her but kissed her hand as well. 

  
"Thank you as well, Sloane. The two of you have brought some peace to the galaxy by eliminating the Holderons." the Togruta said. He approached the carbonite the Mandalorian had pushed and expected to see Paxton, but frowned when he saw Vigo instead. "I know this man," he said gravely. The Togruta rested his hand on Vigo's head. "He was thrown in with the rest of us when the Bloodless first captured him." the Togruta looked up at the Mandalorian. "He told us you were coming. He said you would be the one to help us be free again. That is why the Bloodless took him away." 

  
Sloane looked up at the Mandalorian in shock, who stood still in tense silence. She smiled and looked down at Vigo. "Yes, that sounds like something Vigo would say." Sloane said fondly. 

  
The Togruta kept one hand on Vigo's head, and patted Sloane's shoulder with the other hand. "Don't worry child, he will survive." He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "Yes, I can still feel the life within him. He will prevail." 

  
Sloane blinked at him. "You can feel his life?" Sloane asked. She had never heard anyone say anything like that before.

  
The Togruta pursed his lips and had a strained expression. He looked away as if to say "I have said to much," and patted Sloane's shoulder again. "Don't worry. He will survive." the Togruta said, and then stepped away from Vigo. He turned back to the Mandalorian who had watched the two quietly. "Go now. Surely our break out has attracted the attention of the authorities. It's probably best you aren't caught before they take your bounty away."

  
The Mandalorian nodded. "Stay safe," he simply said and opened the door to his ship. The Togruta and his children stepped back as Sloane and the Mandalorian loaded Paxton and Vigo onto the ship. The Mandalorian was able to easily secure Paxton and Vigo simply by turning off the anti-gravity and tied them down with bungee cords. He climbed up to the cockpit and Sloane stayed below deck. The Mandalorian lifted his ship off the ground, and flew over the Bloodless base. The bay door was still open, and Sloane leaned out and threw a location beacon onto the roof of the building so that her Imperial connection would know where to find the base. Just about all of the slaves had escaped now, but the Togruta and his children remained. Sloane waved at them, and then closed the door to signal the Mandalorian to take off. He saw the Togruta and his family wave from the ground and merely nodded at them, then pulled away towards the atmosphere. 

  
"Where to now?" The Mandalorian asked Sloane. In the distance he could already see the police lights make their way towards the base.

  
Sloane frowned in thought. "Somewhere we can lay low for a while," Sloane said, and then frowned deeper in thought as she considered something. "Hey can I use your holoprojector to make a call right quick?" 

  
The Mandalorian looked back at her, and then shrugged. He tossed her the puck sized holoprojector. "Going to call Reya?" he asked.

  
"Yeah, yeah," Sloane said. She wasn't, but now that the Mandalorian reminded her she made a mental note to contact her after. 

  
"You should go below deck. It's quieter." The Mandalorian said, his eyes stayed at the sky ahead of him. They had left Corellia's atmosphere and entered space.

  
"Alright, thanks," Sloane said and left the cockpit. She climbed back down the ladder and turned on the holoprojector. She knew it was a long shot, but she tried to call anyway. She sat down on one of the crates the Mandalorian had sitting around and waited anxiously for the receiver to pick up.

  
"Sloane!" Sirius said with as much joy as if he had received the present he had wanted most in life. "Good to finally hear from you!"

  
"Hey, Sirius!" Sloane said, just as happy to see him though she had hoped Reba would answer. "It's good to see you, too. Hey, I've gotta question. I know this is usually a big 'no', but I wouldn't be asking if I didn't think it was important." And then she explained everything that had happened. She told him about the plan, the meeting with Paxton, the Mandalorian freeing the slaves, and finally Vigo. "He's in real bad shape. There's no way we can take him to a hospital that won't ask questions. We need to bring him in to headquarters." Sloane pleaded to Sirius.

  
Sirius furrowed his brows and stroked his beard. "Sloane, you know we have to keep our location a secret." he finally said.

  
"This is an emergency, Sirius! I'm an Eye! Vigo is an Eye!"

  
"But the Mandalorian isn't." Sirius said with a grimace. 

  
Sloane puffed her chest confidently. "He's caught my Eye." Sloane said, her words held more meaning than they appeared.

  
Sirius raised as eyebrow. "Has he now?" he said as he started to stroke his beard again. 

  
"Yes," Sloane said firmly. "He knows how to keep a secret."

  
Sirius continued to stroke his beard in thought. He finally took a deep breath and nodded. "Alright, Sloane. I trust you. Bring'em in."

  
Sloane smiled and nodded excitedly. "Don't worry, Sirius! Tell Reba I'm on my way!" 

  
"I will, I will. See you soon, Slo. Can't wait to have you back." Sirius gave her one last smile and then ended the call. 

  
Sloane pumped her fists in victory. She nearly climbed the ladder up to the cockpit again, and then jumped back down when she realized she still had to call Reya. She called and Reya screamed in delight at the news.

  
"Thank you a thousand times!" Reya screeched. "You have done more for my family than you can ever imagine! We are forever in your debt!"

  
"No debt," Sloane said as she wagged her finger. "Just keep your brother safe for me, will ya?" Reya continued to thank her for the next ten minutes. When she finished the called, Sloane finally returned to the cockpit. While she was away he had spent his time searching the maps in his ship's log. 

  
"Took you long enough," the Mandalorian said sarcastically. 

  
"You won't believe all the ways Reya can say thank you," Sloane said and rolled her eyes. "You figure out a place to go?"

  
"Not really," the Mandalorian said with a sigh. 

  
"Here, let me put in some coordinates," Sloane said and she approached the Mandalorian. 

  
"Where to?" he asked suspiciously.

  
"Don't worry about it," Sloane said, and the Mandalorian put his hands over the controls to block her. "Hey, you said you wanted to know about my crew, didn't you?" Sloane asked.

  
"Well..." the Mandalorian said hesitantly.

  
Sloane started to punch the coordinates into the ships hyperdrive, "Then let's go. They're expecting us." Sloane finished and looked down at the Mandalorian. He hesitated, and then pushed the lever foward and the ship blinked away. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading! This is the last official chapter of the Crisis on Corellia story. The next chapter will really be more of an epilogue to neatly finish off the story. This chapter took me a really long time to write and edit because of all that happens in it! I hope you enjoyed the chapter, and that it made sense and was easy to follow. As always don't be afraid to ask me any questions or leave comments!


	10. Epilogue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The mission on Corellia is finally over. The Mandalorian has collected his bounties, Vigo has been rescued from Bloodless base, and all of the slaves the Bloodless held captive are freed. All that's left now is for misfit duo to go their separate ways, but first, the Mandalorian must return Sloane to the Wandering Eye headquarters.

"So, that's the Mandalorian?" Sirius asked. He and Reba were the only two people in the office that overlooked the hangar. He watched Sloane and the Mandalorian down below. As soon as they arrived at the station, they drew a crowd. Vigo was rushed to the medical bay where he began his recovery, and Sloane stood by the Mandalorian and his old ship as they talked to the small crowd that had formed around them.

  
"So he says," Reba said. She sat in a chair with her feet kicked onto the deactivated holotable. She sharpened her blade in disinterest. "There are more pretenders in stolen armor than there are actual Mandalorians."

  
"Never seen a helmet like that before. Raw material, looks like real beskar." Sirius said. He stroked his beard and studied the Mandalorian. He couldn't see his face, but Sirius guessed that he didn't talk much. He stood still beside Sloane with his arms crossed as she talked animatedly to the crew. She waved her hands about and her mouth never stopped. Every now in then the Mandalorian's head would bob up and down, either because he finally spoke or he was just nodding along.

  
Reba stood up and sheathed her sword. She finally approached the window and stood beside Sirius to look at the Mandalorian. The armor looked right, but Reba still humphed doubtfully. "Looks can be deceiving." was all she said, and Sirius smiled at her.

  
"You would know a thing or two about that, wouldn't you?" he said playfully, and Reba smirked back.

  
"Maybe we should properly introduce ourselves to our new ally." Reba said and silently walked out the door. Sirius barked a laugh and followed her.

  
"You changed the subject because you didn't have a good comeback." he joked and Reba flashed him a smirk over her shoulder.

  
"Oh, I had a comeback. I just didn't want to ruin our friendship." Reba quipped, and Sirius laughed again.

  
In the hangar, Sloane had just about finished up the story of their invasion of the Bloodless base. She didn't need to tell the crew of how they met, since that story had apparently already made it's way around the station. 

  
"Where are they? Where's the Holderons?" Arlo asked in wonder. He had a bandage around his torso, and winced whenever he laughed, but his wound from the shootout wasn't severe. Just a flesh wound that would leave a dark scar on his side and a hunger for more action.

  
"On the ship. Paxton is in carbonite, Pax is on ice." Sloane said as she crossed her arms.

  
"You killed him?" Leroy exclaimed.

  
"No, he did," Sloane said and looked up at the Mandalorian. She couldn't see the cocky smirk on his face but she could hear it in his voice.

  
"It was easy. I've seen Stormtroopers with better aim." the Mandalorian said. Everyone laughed. The Mandalorian wasn't used to such a crowd. The others in his covert weren't nearly so curious or chatty about his work. The Mandalorian felt awkward by the sudden attention, but it felt nice to be surrounded by people who didn't want to kill him for once. For the first time all week, the Mandalorian felt comfortable, maybe even safe.

  
Two figures appeared in the hangar door. An older man with graying hair, a beard, and an eye patch and a red Zabrak female with her hands folded behind her back. They walked towards the crowd quietly. The Zabrak made eye contact with the Mandalorian, and gave him a suspicious glare.

  
"Alright now, break's over guys," the older man said. He clapped his hands together to get everyone's attention. "We still have work to do. Let's stay on schedule." The crowd didn't so much as groan. They dissipated without argument after saying farewell to the Mandalorian. Once they were gone, only Sloane, the Mandalorian, and the man and woman remained near the ship.

  
Sloane stepped towards the man with open arms. He pulled her into a tight hug and ruffled her hair. "It's nice to see you kid." The man said as he squeezed her.

  
"Did you ever have any doubt I wouldn't come back?" Sloane asked as she put her hands on her hips.

  
"Never," Sirius said with a grin. He looked up at the Mandalorian and crossed his arms. "Well, if it isn't the legend himself." 

  
The Mandalorain was stunned. "You know me?" he asked. 

  
Sirius gestured to Sloane, "She told us about you on every call. It's not everyday someone meets a Mandalorian."

  
"That, and the news of your little raid on the Bloodless base arrived before you." Reba finally spoke. Sloane's face paled.

  
"What? How?" she asked stunned.

  
Reba frowned. "A massive explosion at an abandoned warehouse in a major city doesn't go unnoticed. Honestly, what were you thinking?" Reba focused her anger at Sloane. It actually wasn't beyond the realm of possibility for the explosions to be Sloane's plan, but for once it wasn't, and she was more than happy to divert the blame.

  
"Umm, it was his idea." Sloane quickly pointed to the Mandalorian beside her. Reba gave him another withering glare and he froze under the intensity of it.

  
"And who are you?" Reba demanded.

  
"I'm just a bounty hunter." was all the Mandalorian could think to say.

  
"Mm-hm," Reba hummed in sarcastic disbelief. She crossed her arms in front of her now and raised her eyebrow in suspicion.

  
"He also freed the slaves!" Sloane blurted out in the Mandalorian's defense. 

  
"He did what?" Sirius said in shock. 

  
"He freed the slaves at the Bloodless base. It wasn't even part of the plan, he just did it on his own." Sloane said. Reba tipped her head back and looked at the Mandalorian down her nose. Sirius grinned and started to stroke his beard as he looked at the Mandalorian.

  
"Did you now?" Sirius asked.

  
"Yes, I did." The Mandalorian said as he quickly tried to compose himself. "I saw no point in trapping them there when we cut the power, and I needed to create a distraction."

  
"That's one heluva distraction!" Sirius smiled, clearly impressed. He looked to Reba for her reaction, and while her glared had disappeared, she still had her eyebrow raised suspicion. If there was anything Reba and the Mandalorian had in common, it was a natural distrust in strangers. 

  
"Impressive," was all Reba said as she relaxed her face. 

"Acts of kindnesss like that go far in this galaxy, Mando." Sirius held out his hand for the Mandalorian to shake. "I'm glad you're on our side."

  
The Mandalorian shook his hand, but felt the need to set the record straight. "I'm not exactly on your side." 

  
Sirius smiled at the Mandalorian. "You got rid of the Holderons. That's good enough as far as I'm concerned. What do you think Reba?"

  
Reba gave the Mandalorian one last careful look and then pursed her lips. "He has the potential to be an ally." she said, then she also extended her hands towards the Mandalorian. "Thank you for aiding Sloane in her time of need. If there's anything we can do to repay you, let us know." 

  
"Just take her off my hands." the Mandalorian said and waved Sloane away dismissivley. Sloane and Sirius laughed, and Reba even smiled a little.

"That can be arranged," Reba said and beckoned to Sloane with her hand. "Come along, Sloane. I want a full report on your time in Coronet City."

  
Sloane rolled her shoulders and smiled up at the Mandalorian. "See ya, Mando. Don't leave without saying good-bye." she said and the Mandalorian nodded. Sloane followed Reba out of the hangar and left him alone with Sirius. 

  
"This is an old ship." Sirius said as he admired the Mandalorian's ship. "Pre-Empire, Razor Crest, used to be a military drop ship." The Mandalorian was surprised. He was so used to people asking him the same questions over and over and yet Sirius already had all the questions answered for himself.

  
"Yes, how did you know?" the Mandalorian couldn't help but ask. 

Sirius smiled. "I'm just a spaceship enthusiast. Say, I never properly introduced myself. I'm Sirius Occasey."

* * *

"Leaving so soon?" Sloane asked. She walked up behind the Mandalorian as he was refueling his ship. 

  
"I still have to turn my bounties in." the Mandalorian turned to face Sloane. She frowned a bit.

  
"Right, right," she looked away as she felt her cheeks get warm. "Hey, you never told me what medicine you needed."

  
The Mandalorian waved a hand. "Don't worry about it," he said.

  
"Well, even if you don't want to tell me, at least let us help." Sloane said and put her hands on her hips. "We have connections. We can get you help."

  
The Mandalorian looked down at her and shook his head. "Where do you get all these connections?" he asked as he crossed his arms.

  
"We're a delivery service. We have clients all over the outer rim, even a pharmaceutical distributor." Sloane said and held out a small card towards the Mandalorian. 

  
"I..." the Mandalorian started as he looked at the very real business card. 

  
"Just place an order, and tell them Star Runner Delivery Service recommended you." Sloane smiled at him. "We'll even deliver it, if you need us too."

  
"I can do it myself," the Mandalorian said. He tucked the card into one of his many pouches and hesitated. He took a deep breath and then looked at Sloane. "Thank you,"

  
Sloane's smiled widened. "It's our pleasure." she said.

  
"No, I mean for everything." the Mandalorian said. "For the intel on the Bloodless, for your help with the raid... thank you."

  
Sloane could feel her cheeks grow warmer so she looked away again. "I should be thanking you. You're the one who saved my ass, like, twice. I was a brat the entire time."

  
"You really were." the Mandalorian said and Sloane punched his arm right on his spaulder. He chuckled as she shook out her hand in pain.

  
"I'm trying to be nice!" Sloane snapped as she rubbed her knuckles. She had somehow forgotten about his armor when she punched him but now she was sure she would never forget it. She stretched out her fingers and then held out her hand towards the Mandalorian. He took it without hesitation and clasped it mid air. "You're not so bad, Mando." Sloane said with a smile.

  
The Mandalorian was glad she couldn't see the big grin that had spread across his face. "You're not so bad yourself, Sloane." he said. His ship was refueled so he gave her hand a tight squeeze and let go. "I'll find you if I ever need to make a delivery." he told her as he walked up the ramp to his ship. 

  
"What if I need to find you?" Sloane asked. She stepped towards the ramp and looked up at the Mandalorian. "For, you know, non-Guild work." 

  
The Mandalorian paused for a moment, and then reached into his one of his pouches. He tossed a small holoprojector towards her and nodded. "Just call me. I'll come as soon as I can."

  
Sloane smiled up at the Mandalorian and clutched the holoprojector in her hands. She could feel her face grow warmer still and her smile grow wider. "See you around, Mando!"

She called as he boarded his ship. He gave her a two finger salute and closed the door. A moment later he flew out of the hangar, and zipped into hyperspace. Reba approached her from behind with her hands clasped behind her back. 

  
"Sad to see him go?" Reba asked and Sloane jumped at her voice.

  
"He was cool, but he still has work to do. He can't hang out." Sloane said. She tossed the holoprjector in her hand.

  
"What's that?" Reba asked as she saw the little device.

  
Sloane held it out for Reba to see. "A way to contact the Mandalorian."

"He may not even be a real Mandalorian, you know." Reba said as she took the holoprojector. "And I'm sure we won't ever need to hire a bounty hunter."

  
"Well, you never know. He may have... other skills that could prove useful." Sloane shrugged. Reba smiled at her.

  
"I'm sure you can't wait to work with him again." she said and Sloane blushed. Reba sighed and wrapped an arm around Sloane's shoulders. "I have a feeling we'll see him again." 

  
"You think so?" Sloane asked as she tried to not sound too excited.

  
Reba closed her eyes and took a deep breath. When she opened them again she looked out into the dark abyss of space where the Mandalorian's ship had once been. "Yes. Hard times are coming, and we are only capable of so much. We may need help from someone like him."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the last chapter of the Crisis on Corellia story, but not the end of The Wandering Eye as a whole! I still have plenty more stories I want to tell, and I can't wait to start writing them! I hope those of you that have made it this far have enjoyed my first attempt at writing. I know I'm not the best, but I had a lot of fun nonetheless, and I hope that you guys had fun reading it as well! As always, don't be afraid to leave any questions or comments! I'll reply as quickly as possible!


End file.
